Hellenistic Sculpture

This book presents a new study of Greek large-scale bronze statuary of the late Archaic and Classical periods. It examines the discovery, origin, style, date, artistic attribution, identification, and interpretation of the surviving bronzes, and focuses in particular on their technical features and casting techniques. It contains over 170 plates of photographs and drawings to illustrate its discussion.

It also places the development of the casting techniques in connection with the stylistic evolution in Greek free-standing sculpture. During the Classical period, artists preferred bronze to marble when creating their contrapposto figures. Indisputably, bronze gave particular freedom to artists in creating three-dimensional figures. In addition, the evolution in style encouraged the development of the uses of bronze to serve the new needs and tendencies in sculpture during the late Archaic and especially the Classical period. Through the examination of how technical matters affect style, this book presents fresh interpretations of these important monuments of Greek art and offers a new approach in the field of Greek free-standing bronze sculpture.

Ky botim, i shtypur në 2000 kopje, nuk është në shitje.
Iu shpërndahet falas të gjithë të interesuarve që vizitojnë
Muzeun Arkeologjik Apolloni deri në përfundim të
rezervave.
Fotografitë e publikuara në këtë botim janë origjinale dhe
të realizuara nga institucionet e përfshira në projektin
3D-IMP-ACT, si dhe institucionet mbështetëse të
projektit që kanë kontribuar në përgatitjen e këtij botimi.
Mbështetja financiare për hartimin dhe publikimin e këtij
materiali është siguruar nga Programi Interreg IPA CBC,
Itali - Shqipëri - Mal i Zi 2014/2020.


The publication printed in 2000 copies, is not intended for
sale. It shall be distributed free of charge to all interested
visitors of the Archaeological Museum of Apollonia until
the number of copies available finish.
The pictures published in this publication are original
and are realized from partner institutions of 3D-IMPACT project and stakeholder institutions that have
contributed to the realization of this publication.
The preparation and printing of this publication was made
possible with the financial support of Interreg IPA CBC
Italy-Albania-Montenegro 2014/2020 Program.

During the Hellenistic period, Boeotia was one of the most important anthemion-stele producing centers in Greece. Due to the antiluxury decree of Demetrios of Phaleron (317-307 B.C.) in Athens, many Athenian artists immigrated to nearby Boeotia, where they continued the attic anthemion-stele tradition.
In the Middle Hellenistic period, while workshops in central, southern (Thebes, Thespiae) and east Boeotia (Tanagra) continued the traditional baroque style, artisans of Chaironeia in northwestern Boeotia differed. Once students of the Thespian baroque masters, the Chaironean craftsmen created a naïv version of the baroque tradition using local, thick grained gray-blue marble. This new naïv style eventually spread throughout Phocis and Doris.

The gravestele which found in Notion is in Museum of Efes. A sitting woman on chair and standing a man are described between two servant figures on the upper part broken stele. All of the figures on the stele are high relief like a freestanding statues. It appears that this type of stele centers on Ionia (Smyrna, Ephesos etc.) has worked continually centers from third century B.C. to first century B.C. The stele of Notion is a similar facilities with stele produced on centers of mentioned. Liveliness of standing figures and description of the fabric under the mantle appearence on beginning of second century B.C. This features recall the figures on the altar reliefs of Magnesia Artemis and the altar reliefs of Pergamon.
The pose and himation of the standing man and the sitting woman with ample himation, description her hand under the mantle reflect styles of second century B.C. Notion stele, the result of the figures compared with free standing statues and stelai producted on same period, is appeared to product by an artist under the influence of Smyrna and Samos. In terms of stylistic grounds, the work should be dated on first quarter of second century B.C.

The main aim of this thesis is to investigate whether the socio-political similarities between the Amarna and Hellenistic periods have had a (partially) similar impact on the portrait sculptures that emerged from each period. Despite being roughly 1000 years apart in time and in geographically different locations, the Amarna and Hellenistic periods share a number of similarities. Both are characterised by sudden cultural, political and religious changes that occurred on a vast scale, resulting in the mass relocation of people who had to adjust to a new way of life.
Major innovations occurred within the art and iconography that
was produced in each of these periods, too, particularly in regards to portrait sculptures. Art is generally accepted to be a reflection of the socio-political climate of a given historical period. Therefore, by making a comparison between the sculpture of these two ancient cultures, I hope to discover why particular sculptural elements and themes became favoured within portrait sculptures that emerged in these periods. Realism and individualism became more prominent stylistic choices, breaking with the popular idealised portrait styles that were typical of pre-Amarna pharaonic Egypt and pre-Hellenistic Classical Greece. Another common element within portrait sculptures from both periods is the inclusion of features that suggest signs of ageing, which again was not typical before these periods. Lastly, gender- bending also occurs within some of the sculptures from each period, meaning that male portraits are given effeminate attributes, whilst female ones are given masculine attributes; these thematic elements within sculpture spark interesting questions about gender and power, and how they may have been viewed in society during the unusual times that encapsulate these periods. This is not to say that other elements are not present; for example, the portraits from both periods also display an increased emphasis on depicting rulers as divine; however, the three themes that I will focus on are, in my opinion, the most prevalent and relevant. comparison of two ancient cultures with similar trajectories may also allow for a deeper understanding of the psychology of ancient peoples and how they reacted to times of political turmoil and uncertainty.

A statue of Cybele, found during the excavations in 2016 in the fortress of Kurul, within the borders of Ordu (Kotyora) in the region of eastern Black Sea, has once more  proven that the fortress had been used not only for defence purposes but also for cultic reasons. The seated statue of Cybele has been found placed in a rectangular formed niche (naiskos) which takes place in an enclosed space with differing wall technics and  phases. The Cybele of Ordu reflects all features attributed to her ever since: Her being  placed in the entrance of a fortress, being seated in a niche (naiskos) and close to water sources, the absence of lions as in early versions or the absence of tympanon or phiale as in later depictions. That the Ordu statue is a Cybele, is clear when compared with the ‘hellenized’ Cybele statues; their iconographies are similar. The Ordu Cybele resembles the Classical Period Cybele of Athens, Pireus Moschaton and of Lebadeia as well as the Hellenistic Period Cybele of Pergamon or Palatine. The dating of the statue on stylistic bases leads us in sense of comparison material to the Pergamenean ‘school’ or to other important centres of Hellenistic statuary such as Kos or Aigai. The Ordu Cybele still carries ‘Barock’ tendencies not really being ‘Classistic’ yet and bearing a clear plain Hellenistic understanding which leads us to the mid or just to the beginning of the second half of the 2 nd century BC. A support for this dating is offered by the form characteristics and decoration of one of the preserved capitals of two pilasters, once situated at both sides of the niche. Comparable examples herefore are dated to the 2 nd century BC in Samos and Pergamon. Coins once placed in the niche and historical events are also taken into consideration for the dating and understanding of the politics of Mithradates VI. As a matter of fact coins of this king were placed underneath the statue of Cybele; finds dating earlier then the 2 nd century BC and later then the period of Mithradates VI have not been found here or elsewhere on the excavation site. This makes it once again clear that the statue was produced anyway before the death of the king. One possibil ity is that the statue was produced for the cult place of this site by sculptors who were familiar with the art trends of the 2nd century BC, before being converted to a fortress  by Mithradates VI. So this means that the statue was moved from the cult place to the entrance of the fortress by Mithradates VI. The second possibility is that it was brought  by him, after announcing himself as a king in Pergamon, from Pergamon or a centre under the influence of Pergamon, all the way to his fortress in Ordu. In this way he must have made his propaganda and at the same time he must have seeked for mercy from the goddess Cybele, as the political events started turning out to be negative for him. As a result, the stylistic characteristics of Cybele do not overlap with the dates 90-64 BC as Mithradates VI must have reorganized the cult place as a fortress with its entrance and niche for the statue. This shows us that the statue was not planed for this place but was produced much earlier, just as the capital of the pilaster. Both have been dated to the 2nd century BC.

Nul ne doute plus aujourd'hui du rôle majeur qu'ont joué les couleurs et l'or dans la structuration des sociétés grecques antiques, au long des siècles. Tout suggère une passion grecque pour la couleur étendue à tout type de production (vêtements, vaisselle, cosmétiques, statues, édifi ces etc.) sur tout support, dans tous les domaines de la vie, funéraire compris. Mais que savons-nous réellement des arts de la couleur eux-mêmes, des matériaux et des savoir-faire qui ont fait son succès ? Peut-on en apprécier l'impact économique et social ? N'est-il pas urgent à présent de mesurer aussi les conséquences esthétiques d'une telle révolution polychrome ? L'incolore y trouvait-il malgré tout sa place ? Les couleurs étaient-elles fi lles d'illusion, y compris sur le plan politique ? L'ouvrage aborde ces questions en toute liberté d'investigation interdisciplinaire. Il réunit pour cela spécialistes venus de tout horizon scientifi que, archéologues, architectes, chimistes, conservateurs de musées, historiens, historiens de l'art, restaurateurs. Pour éclairer cette expérience grecque unique de la couleur, on a souhaité aussi la mesurer aux expressions qu'en ont explorées d'

By comparing the plaster casts of the two portraits of Cleopatra VII in the Vatican and in Berlin, we can deduce information on the quality, dating and reconstruction of both marbles. Presumably, they were sculpted during the Caesarian period in one of the Greek workshops in Rome. Owing to its asymmetry particularly in respect of the hairdo and the missing left ear the Berlin piece proves to be a relief head. Its plain surface on the left side provides evidence that the portrait was made separately and then attached to a relief base, as part of a full figural representation or a relief tondo.

The calm serenity of the gods featured on the narrow upper frieze of the chryselephantine couche found in the chamber of Philipp'II tomb is in marked contrast to the impassioned movement of the more active mortals on the front of the wide frieze immediately below.  Here, against a gilded backdrop, fourteen male figures, rendered in rather high relief, move on foot and on horseback. The limbs and the faces of the figures are of ivory, the other parts were of carved wood, gilded and painted, which for the most part has been eroded and lost. As revealed by the gestures of the figures, and the composition of the scene overall these men were not engaged in combat with each other but were in pursuit of animals.
The hunters wore sleeved or sleeveless short tunics, capes, boots and, as deduced from the way in which the heads of all were cut at the top, hats resembling wide berets, the characteristic Mace-donian kausies. The absence of heroic nudity and the presence of typical Macedonian attire for the time reveal unequivocally the disposition for realism that dominates the modelling of the figures themselves.
Ten of the fourteen small heads are preserved in very good condition. Worked with absolute precision and meticulous attention, by the hand of an accomplished artist, these heads, of momentous importance despite their miniature size, are without doubt among the most remarkable studies of the human figure known from ancient art. The artist’s conscious intention in rendering each of these faces with specific individualised features, which depart markedly from the strictures of the generalised idealised types, is i think obvious, notwithstanding the stylistic unity apparent in the figures, as a personalised stamp of the artist.
if we accept that ancient artworks exist which can rightly be awarded the title of portrait, then we have here some of the most characteristic of these. Philip, his young heir alexander, and one dozen other kinsmen and companions of the king are portrayed in a particularly realistic manner on this couch, but in the absence of other comparanda, it is not easy to put to the faces the names we know from the sources and so to identify them.

The paper focuses on the iconographic analysis of a carparo statue from the National Archaeological Museum of Taranto. Thanks to several comparisons, it is possible to argue that it is a representation of Dionysus, dressed in pardalis and short chiton. The pose and clothing lead back to a statuary type known from several Roman replicas (Hope type) and from late-Classical votive reliefs. The iconography and religious relationship between Dionysus and Artemis Bendis is also addressed to clarify the particular meaning that the statue could have had in Taranto. Finally, the possible context of the discovery of the sculpture is analyzed, hypothetically identifiable in the sanctuary found at the end of the 19th century between Acclavio and Anfiteatro streets.

On 4th of  May 2009, in Shallalat Gardens of  Alexandria, a marble statue was found, during theexcavations held by h.r.i.a.c.(Hellenic Research Institute of  Alexandrian Civilization). The stat-ue represents a standing naked man in a form of  classical contraposto, with one foot raised, pos-sibly bent to a support. Head and body are in a very good condition, but the part of  the legs un-der the knees is missing. The features of  the statue, the attributes and the stylistic analysis areconnected with the portraiture of  Alexander the Great.

Wie kaum eine andere Skulptur zieht der Barberinische Faun die Betrachter in seinen Bann, dient als Folie moderner Kunst und als modische Ikone. Hierbei stehen nicht zuletzt die erotischen Aspekte der Figur im Zentrum des Interesses – sowohl die hetero- wie homoerotischen! Der Beitrag fasst zusammen, was hinsichtlich der Aufstellung, Wirkung und Rezeption der Statue bekannt ist.

Παρουσίαση της γνωστής από τη βιβλιογραφία αρχιτεκτονικής γλυπτικής δημόσιων και ιδιωτικών χώρων των νησιών του Αιγαίου κατά τους ελληνιστικούς χρόνους και σύντομη πραγμάτευση των ερμηνευτικών προβλημάτων τους. Διπλωματική εργασία που κατατέθηκε στο τμήμα Ιστορίας και Αρχαιολογίας του ΕΠΚΑ το 2006 για το πρόγραμμα μεταπτυχιακών σπουδών του α κύκλου.

The book is devoted to the reconstruction of the history of a single kind of statue, the cuirassed statue. To address this issue, I took into account a single type of cuirass, the Hellenistic armour, used by Alexander on the battlefield, I have tried to offer an analysis of its typological and iconographic evolution, I have compared its spread in portrait-statues with the classicistic breastplate, and I have stressed the importance of the armour surface for decoration display. I have thus recognised the existence of a hierarchy among the types of cuirassed statues from the Augustan to the Antonine age. This hierarchy favoured the spread of the classicistic type because of its rich decorativeness and because it could be consequently used as a message related to the themes of the imperial propaganda (the cuirassed statue was really a very effective figurative medium).


SOMMARIO: Introduzione – Parte I. Statue loricate: un genere plurale: L’introduzione della corazza ellenistica - L’età ellenistica: l’uniformità - Augusto e Mars Ultor: la varietà - L’uso dell’immagine loricata tra età augustea e giulio-claudia – Parte II. Le statue loricate di tipo ellenistico dalla metà del I sec. a.C. all’età antonina: Loricati con corazza anatomica tra la seconda metà del I sec. a.C. e la prima metà del I sec. d.C. - Loricati con corsetto cilindrico tra la seconda metà del I sec. a.C. e la fine del I sec. d.C. - Loricati con corazza anatomica nella seconda metà del I sec. d.C.: le pteryges frangiate ‘barocche’ - Il revival del loricato ellenistico nel II sec. d.C. - La varietà nelle statue loricate.

Deux portraits trouvés sur le site de Iol-Caesarea-Cherchell (Algérie) ont fait l'objet de diverses interprétations. Leur étude nous apprend que ces deux figures en ronde bosse  considérées comme ceux de Cléopâtre VII, n'appartiennent aucunement à la reine d'Egypte. La première représente bien la fille : Cléopâtre Séléné de Maurétanie, femme de Juba II. La seconde effigie, regardée comme celle de Cléopâtre VII, serait plutôt une figure masculine.

Lukas Nickel’s article “The First Emperor and Sculpture in China” in the Bulletin
of the School of Oriental and African Studies (2013) has drawn significant attention
to the issue of Hellenistic influence on the making of the terracotta warriors
excavated from the mausoleum of the First Emperor of China. In the perspective
of textual evidence, Nickel attaches much importance to the connection between
the Chinese report of the twelve da ren 大人 (“Big Men”) in Lintao 臨洮 in the
Hanshu and the account of the construction of “altars” to the twelve Olympian
gods by Alexander the Great at the easternmost point of his expedition to India
in the Bibliotheca Historica. This coincidence suggests to Nickel that the twelve
Big Men are a possible reference to large sculptural figures erected on the western
border of the empire. This article aims to question this interpretation of the twelve
da ren as sculptures in the Hanshu. A twofold examination of the textual and other
historical sources will make clear that the twelve Big Men were mentioned not
as huge statues but as exceptionally tall visitors, an exemplary omen related to
human illness manifested in physical abnormality.

In addition, Lintao’s geographic location as the westernmost outpost of the empire has been highlighted in Nickel’s argument on the link between the story of the twelve Big Men and Hellenistic influence on early Chinese sculpture. The Qin state was located in the far west of the seven Warring States and Lintao was not newly acquired land but a county already under Qin rule before the First Emperor conquered the six other states. Given that the people of Tunliu were transported to Lintao after their association with The First Emperor's brother, Lord Chang’an’s rebellion, it would appear to have been under effective Qin administration during the reign of the First Emperor. This makes it hard to believe that twelve giant statues could suddenly have been erected there without the Qin state knowing about this in advance. Furthermore, it is most unlikely that the First Emperor would have mistaken their unexpected appearance (as mega-statues) in such a sensitive location as an auspicious sign, rather than a warning omen.

Moreover, textually speaking, there is a fundamental problem with respect to the idea of making a link between the twelve Olympian gods and the twelve Golden Men commissioned by the First Emperor. There are at least five or six goddesses among the twelve Olympian gods. If the twelve Golden Men had been produced in imitation of the image of the twelve Olympian gods and goddesses and were presented publicly according to Alexandrian practice as Nickel suggested, it is very likely, if not certain, that such unprecedented exotic female figures among these Golden Men would have drawn the attention of contemporary Chinese historians and of those who had ever seen them ( some of the Golden Men had survived for centuries after the fall the Qin dynasty.) However, the existing Chinese written sources report not a single indication or implication of any female feature among them.

IN ENGLISH
At some point in his reign, Alexander had coins issued in which Herakles’ face was indeed incorporated in the king’s portrait. This might betray an attempt at his deification. Thus the Herakles coin iconography and its corollary pro-paganda content is divided into two stages. The first had Herakles as a prototype of Alexander and a bearer of a pan-Hellenic message. The second was the time when Alexander had become Herakles, the living son of Zeus or Amon. While under Philip II the basic repertory of coin iconography included the head of Herakles and of Zeus, a new element was added under Alexander: Zeus seated on a throne and holding an eagle. It is no accident that coin iconography changed on Alex-ander’s coinage compared to that of his father’s issues. The figure of Zeus enthroned is a modification of Baaltarz, a motif known well enough from the Achaemenid mint at Tarsus in the 4th century. The similarity is seen in the posture of the seated figure and in the depiction of the throne which faithfully imitates the Achaemenid prototype. The figure of Zeus, too, was perceived by the Asians as their local deities: in the Levant and Babylonia, it was true especially of Baal82. For the Iranians, the associations tend-ed to be with Ahuramazda. In Kommagene (1st century BC) there is a relief depicting Zeus-Oromazdes/Ahuramazda – a clear example of cross-identification83. Coins of the Diadochs showing a deified Alexander replicate the iconography of a portrait known from the king’s coinage. If no monetary portrait of his had existed under Alexander, how could this similarity be accounted for? Smith concentrates on simi-larities between the king’s sculpted portraits with his monetary depictions. This is a valid perspective, but in a comprehensive treatment of the problem, it is necessary to scrutinize more closely questions involved in the role played by monetary issues with the king’s portraits in propaganda and in the concept of his rule. Smith brushes these problems marginally, which is understandable given her choice of subject mat¬ter. These limitations, however, cause some interpretive difficulties, such as those involving identification of the Iranian tiara. Analyzing Alexander’s royal ideology, one concludes that the ruler intentionally carried on as a monarch building his new empire, reaching out in many fields not only to Macedonian and Greek traditions but also – on an imperial level, not just locally – to the Iranian heritage (as by repeatedly using in coinage images of their insignia: the diadem and tiara).
It is worth noting that on his coinage, including on the pieces with the tiara, Alexander usually precisely identified himself as the issuer. The portrait, too, was meant positively to identify the ruler. Still, most scholars maintain that Alexander never put his own portrait on his coins. By introducing his portrait on coins, Alexander drew from a firmly rooted tradition of the Achaemenid epoch in Asia Minor, when issues of satraps and dynasts featured likenesses of the issuers. In the (European mainland) Greek and Macedonian world, a monetary portrait did not exist before Alexander. Its introduc¬tion in Alexander’s local and imperial issues was among his many innovations designed to help build a new power. Such innovations and other achievements of Alexander made a great impact on royal coinage and iconography and on the way monarchical ideology was expressed in the Hellenistic epoch.


IN POLISH
O portretach monetarnych Aleksandra Wielkiego
Uwagi na marginesie książki:
F. Smith, L’immagine di Alessandro il Grande sulle monete del regno (336–323)
Artykuł stanowi nie tylko recenzję pracy włoskiej badaczki Federiki Smith
o monetach Aleksandra Wielkiego, ale też analizę istotnych aspektów ikonografii monetarnej tego króla. Aleksander Wielki wielokrotnie odwoływał się do propagandy monetarnej, stosując ją jako narzędzie realizowanej w Macedonii i potem
w Azji i Egipcie polityki, polegającej na budowaniu imperium kosztem pokonanych Achemenidów.
Aleksander szczególnie czcił Heraklesa i Zeusa, co w czasie jego panowania zostało wielokrotnie poświadczone. Zeus i Herakles mieli swoje lokalne odpowiedniki na podbijanych terenach Azji i w Egipcie i nie wydaje się kwestią przypadku, że stali się głównymi postaciami na monetach zaliczanych do podstawowych emisji Aleksandra produkowanych w mennicach położonych we wschodniej części basenu Morza Śródziemnego. Zdobycie panowania nad obcymi ludami Azji miało swoje konsekwencje w sferze propagandy monetarnej Aleksandra, gdyż zdobywca nie mógł ignorować lokalnych tradycji orientalnych (szczególnie ważne w tym względzie są wizerunki epoki achemenidzkiej na monetach Karii, Likii i Tarsu). Podobizny Aleksandra, stylizowanego na Heraklesa występują na monetach wybijanych za życia króla. Ale monarcha kazał się też przedstawiać i w innej stylizacji, m.in. z atrybutami Zeusa („indyjskie” dekadrachmy) czy w perskiej tiarze (monety z Memfis). Aleksander występował jako władca budujący nowe imperium i sięgający w wielu sferach nie tylko do tradycji macedońskich i greckich, ale też do tradycji lokalnych w Azji i Egipcie. Innowacje i osiągnięcia Aleksandra wywarły ogromny wpływ na charakter mennictwa i ikonografii królewskiej oraz sposób wyrażania ideologii monarchicznej w epoce hellenistycznej.