ANCIENT GREEK SCULPTURES FROM THE BRITISH MUSEUM

Getting familiar with the BM

http://www.britishmuseum.org/explore/themes/animals/introduction.aspx

Go to the above mentioned page, choose a topic and pick up ten words you don’t know. Write them down together with their translation

THE PARTHENON SCULPTURES

Use the correct tense:Periodically, the question of where the surviving sculptures from the Parthenon

should now be displayed ……………………… (become) a subject of public discussion. The Parthenon in Athens …………………… (be) a building with a long and complex history. Built nearly 2,500 years ago as a temple dedicated to the Greek goddess Athena, it …………. (be) for a thousand years the church of the Virgin Mary of the Athenians, then a mosque, and finally an archaeological ruin. When the city ………….. (be) under siege by the Venetians in 1687, the Parthenon itself ………….. (be) used as a gunpowder store. The building ……………………. (be) a ruin ever since.

Between 1801 and 1805 Lord Elgin, the British ambassador to the Ottoman Empire of which Athens ……………………. (be) a part for some 350 years, acting with the full knowledge and permission of the Ottoman authorities, ……………………… (remove) about half of the remaining sculptures from the fallen ruins and from the building itself. Lord Elgin ………………. (transport) the sculptures back to Britain. These sculptures ………………… (be) acquired from Lord Elgin by the British Museum in 1816. Since then the sculptures …………………….. (be) on display to the public in the British Museum, free of entry charge.

THE CONTROVERSY

• The context: sculptures surviving from the Parthenon are located in museums in six different countries. The majority of the sculptures are roughly equally divided between Athens and London. Recently the Greek authorities have continued the process of removing the sculptures from the Parthenon. They are displayed at the New Acropolis Museum.

• What are the arguments for and against the return of the Parthenon sculptures? Why does the Greek government want the sculptures back? Why is the BM reluctant to give them back?

The British Museum’s positionThe British Museum exists to tell the story of cultural achievement throughout the

world, from the dawn of human history over two million years ago until the present day. The Museum is a unique resource for the world. Within the context of this unparalleled collection, the Parthenon sculptures are an important representation of ancient Athenian civilisation.

The Trustees of the British Museum warmly welcome the opening of the New Acropolis Museum which will allow the Parthenon sculptures that are in Athens to be appreciated against the backdrop of ancient Greek and Athenian history. The new museum, however, does not alter the Trustees’ view that the sculptures are part of everyone’s shared heritage and transcend cultural boundaries.

http://www.britishmuseum.org/the_museum/news_and_debate/debate/parthenon_sculptures.aspx

BASIC VOCABULARY

The archaic period (600-480BC)

Ancient GreeceStylization of the figureA rigidly posed figureTense musclesStiff, rigid poseA well-established formulaA frontal poseFrozen smilesThe left foot extended forwardChisels and punchesRough surface qualityCarved marblePainted with bright colours

A youth (a kouros, male figure)A maiden (a kore, female figure)A votive statueOfferings Not true portraits but generic typesA seated figure – a standing figure – a reclining figureLong hair

Heracles and the Amazons, around 350BC

Make full sentences using the following pieces of information:

• Origin : the walls of Castle of St Peter, Bodrum, modern Turkey

• Date: around 350 BC• Subject matter: Herakles and the Amazons,

a Greek legend• Situation : sections of the Amazonomachy

frieze• Composition: three slabs• Preservation: parts are missing, the marble

has eroded in some parts

• LEXICAL FIELD OF FIGHT AND BATTLE: grasp (saisir), strike (frapper), a shield (bouclier), to release oneself from the grasp of an opponent or assaulter, plunge a sword into, protect, lie on the ground, deal a blow at.

• A twisting movement: un mouvement de torsion

The gestures of the fighters add to the liveliness of this battle scene.The stances of the protagonists are contorted and life-like.The limbs of the figures draw diagonals that follow many different directions.

Etruscan death daemon (Vanth)Present simple / Present en ING

Vanth IS the servant of the lord of the underworld.She IS often represented on cinerary urns.She IS usually winged. Most of the time she HOLDS a snake entwined around

her arms. This Etruscan statue IS in the collections of the BM.

In this work, Vanth IS WEARING a tunic and holding two snakes, one in each arm.

Here we can see that she IS WALKING as her left foot is slightly in front of her right foot.

She IS SHOWING one of the snakes to the deceased.

Venus or her mother

• This is the portrait of a deity found in a domestic shrine in a rich Roman house. This full-length portrait shows Venus, the goddess of love. This free-standing statue of Venus is 30 cm high. It is kept in the British Museum. The bronze statue was probably made or cast in the 2nd century.

• DRAPERY• FOLDS• SINUOUS LOCKS OF HAIR• HEADRESS WITH A DOVE• THE HIPS• A HOLE• A FIGURE IN A CONTRAPOSTO: SHE HAS HER

WEIGHT ON HER RIGHT LEG

Aphrodite crouching at her bathTHE HUMAN BODYThe head and headressThe nape (the neck) The shouldersThe arms (forearms) The hand (thumb, forefinger, middle finger, ring

finger, little finger)The wristThe breastsThe back (the spine) - The buttocks The torso – the ribs (ribcage)The belly The loin The thighsThe kneeThe calf – shin The feet and toes – the ankle

A nude – a naked goddess – her nakednessTo kneel near the waterTo crouch down

ASKLEPIOS THE HEALING

GOD

The classical style:The Greeks were used to placing the sculptures

of a God inside the temples. Sculptors used to portray deities.They would idealize mankind. The hair is carved in a naturalistic way. The

locks of hair are supple and made up of many curvilinear lines. Volume is also well-rendered. The handling of the hair enables the sculptor to play with light and shadows.

The beard is fluid and natural. Though endowed with calm, Asklepios has a

solemn facial expression. No passion is stamped on the god’s face. The marble is very smooth and the features regular.

The harmony of the face and the balance between the regular face and the hair and beard exemplify the classical style. Greek artists would illustrate values like harmony and the triumph of reason through their portraits of deities.

DionysosRoman, about AD 40-60, copy of a Greek original of

about 325 BC; said to have been found at Posilipo, Campania, Italy

Use the following adjectives and nouns to describe this sculpture.

Nouns : drapery, ivy wreath (couronne de lierre), arm, beard, face, shoulder, tunic, gaze, nose, lips, folds, corner of the mouth (commissure)

Adjectives : straight, missing, heavy, thin, supple, fine, broad, melancholy, curly, smooth, drooping

MARBLE BUST OF HERCULES

Roman, 2nd century ADSaid to have been found at the foot of Mount Vesuvius, Campania, Italy

HOW TO DESCRIBE A SCULPTURE?The subject matter: is the piece of sculpture a portrait, a commemorative

work, a narrative scene featuring historical or mythological figures, an ornamental item of decoration?

The function: is the sculpture a decorative element embedded in the architecture of a building or the ornamentation of a park ? Is it a votive work associated with the cult of a god or magic beliefs? Is it an everyday artefact used in older times ? Is it an autonomous work created to be shown in a particular place ?

The stylistic features: Does the work belong to one specific period ? Can you liken it to other works produced at the same period? Was the sculptor a member of an artistic group? Is he identified as a proponent of a specific trend? What is emphasized in the work ? (movement, expression, texture, colours, shapes, etc.) How is movement rendered? Is the sculpture life-like, stylized or abstract?

The technique: Which technique was used? Is the piece carved in one single block or composed out of several elements that are assembled ? Are the elements free from the main block ? Is there a pedestal? How is it related to the work? Is the material used to enhance the stylistic features? Do you have an impression of heaftiness or weightlessness? Are there several viewpoints? How is light used? How do the volumes impact upon the reflection of light on the surface?

Site-specificity: What is the relation between the piece and its surroundings? Does the sculpture change our perception of the place? Would the sculpture look different if it was placed in another setting? Is the work meant to be seen next to other works that may complement its perception?

ADJECTIVES FOR THE APPRAISAL OF A SCULPTURE

ROUNDSUPPLE HEAVYEVEN / REGULAR / SMOOTHFINE / DELICATE / BEAUTIFUL / GRACEFULBALANCED/ WELL-PROPORTIONEDTHINLARGEEXPRESSIVE / MOVINGHUMOROUS / JOYFULLIFE-LIKESHINYSYMMETRICALSTRAIGHT

ANGULARSTIFF / RIGID / STATIC / HIERATICLIGHT / WEIGHTLESSBUMPY / UNEVEN / ROUGH / COARSEUGLY / NONEDESCRIPTUNBALANCED / DISPROPORTIONATEBULKY / MASSIVE / HEFTYSMALL / TINY / CRAMPED

STERN / AUSTERESTYLIZED / SIMPLIFIED DULL / MATASYMMETRICALCURVED / CURVILINEAR / ROUND