Semi-precious stone, gold, miniature portraiture, and the incomparable queen Arsinöe II: this head (H. 2.2 cm) in the Walters Art Museum has it all in one tiny package! The stone is amethyst, which is a fun one. Not only did it have royal connotations in Egypt for several thousand years prior to this portrait, the
Spring is in the air and the waterfowl are getting frisky, which brings to mind a spicy Greek myth that struck has struck a chord with artists for the past 2500 years: Zeus’ seduction Leda. The famously philandering Olympian god transformed himself into a variety of exciting things to court and abduct young beauties. And
This is one of the very greatest examples of diadem from the ancient world. Dubbed the ‘Loeb Diadem’ it currently resides in the Munich Antikensammlung, and said to be from the Pantikapaion (modern Kerch) along the Black Sea. The moniker stems from the first (modern) owner, Dr. James Loeb who acquired it in the early
Wearing a battle-ready Athena on the back of one’s head is the definition of fierce fashion. Moreover, this hair ornament from the 2nd century B.C. is a forceful statement of Hellenistic wealth and technical prowess. The central medallion with the bust of Athena has all the things: embossed egg and dart motif, rosettes rendered with
She is shiny, she is pretty, and she is a star of the Capitoline Museums! Excavated during the Lanciani’s late 19th century excavations of the Horti Lamiani (the decadent pleasure garden of the Republican period subsumed under imperial control in the 1st century A.D.), the so-called “Esquiline Venus” is one of many important sculptures found
Hard stone polished to a lustrous shine is irresistible (to me, at least, and probably also inquisitive magpies). In Cleveland’s Museum of Art, a relatively large banded agate has been painstakingly carved into a relatively tiny (only 6.5 cm tall), functional pouring vessel. It is also a wonderful example of Greek and Egyptian traditions blending
I am ocassionally guilty of focusing on splashy marble and bronze statues, as well as (of course) vases with a bit of bathroom humour. But today I want to focus on this terracotta sleeper at the Met While he is not flashy at first glance, a closer look reveals impressive craftsmanship and more importantly a
Hellenistic in origin and striking a chord with an appreciative Roman audience, this statue group has all the things! (and not one of them politically correct…) Shown is an amorous (to be polite) satyr grasping at the voluptuous body of a resisting hermaphrodite (in the classical world, the mythical offspring of Hermes and Aphrodite with
Mimesis on my mind, and gravitating towards bronze today. If the artistic reproduction of reality was the goal, bronze was king, and it had been since atleast the Early Classical period. Life sized bronzes do not survive in great quantities (when they do they are spectacular), but literary evidence indicates that the most acclaimed of
The intermittent discoveries of spectacular ancient bronzes have a way of reminding us just how much we’re missing from antiquity and igniting the imagination… This head with assertively bushy beard, tousled hair and intense glare, was excavated by a Bulgarian team in 2004, and most likely represents Seuthes III. The Thracian king ruled the the
Miniature, but delectable! This is a rare survival of chryselephantine (gold and ivory) sculpture from the Hellenistic world, and is a tantalizing glimpse into the level of luxury that was available to the elite. Here, a komos (the tipsy procession after the symposium) is shown. A young satyr leads the trio playing the aulos (a
Herakles/Hercules was special in the Greek and Roman worlds. He was as famous for his excessive vices as he was for his heroics, and he applied himself with equal dedication to both: a glutton, an incorrigible womanizer, and frequently a drunkard. The life of the party, even though he could have some serious explaining (and
‘Never been buried’ : perhaps the most romantic and captivating descriptor of any ancient artwork and never more than in the case of the so-called Vienna Cameo.The cameo is remarkable in every conceivable dimension, not the least of which is virtuoso technique in which it was carved. The large Indian onyx consists of at least
You might not have heard of Juba II or Volubilis, but this over life-sized bronze portrait somehow sums up the man’s impossible life – a mix of early tragedy, power, and making things work in a tight spot. Juba was born as the prince of Numidia and was only a toddler when his father committed
Ever heard of Aphrodisias’ “Blue Horse”? If not, you’ve been missing out! It’s an insane sculpture (sculptural group, really) in every way, originally erected in the city’s Civil Basilica, where the lower course of the L-shaped base remains, inscribed “The people set up the Troilos, and the horse, and the Achilles” – terrifically helpful because
With powerful, bunched musculature (like a pillowcase packed full of bars of soap!) this impressive red torso at the Met is among my favorites, in subject matter and material. He is one of a number of Imperial Roman copies of centaurs from a (presumably) Hellenistic prototype, with the most famous in the Musei Capitolini: a
Ptolemy I, Alexander the Great’s most canny general, famously diverted Alexander’s funeral cortège as it made its way from Babylon to Macedon, handily taking possession of his body in order to bolster his legitimacy as a Successor. So too did Ptolemy lay claim to Alexander’s image, brilliantly so on coin types struck in the first
Even though worship of Dionysos seems to have been as old as the rest of the Greek pantheon, he was traditionally regarded as a recent addition – an insolent young pup hailing from the exotic East, exuberantly making his way to Mt. Olympus. Tasked by his wily stepmother Hera with conquering India, Dionysos did so
It’s not every day that a eunuch rises from relative administrative obscurity to found a massively successful dynasty, but that is exactly what Philetairos managed.
In an impressive feat of artistry and imagination, this little ivory appliqué grafts a delightfully human, puckish expression onto the hairy caprid face of Pan.