Classical sculpture
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Odds and Ends
Unusual Elements in Palmyrene Iconography
The funerary art that was produced in Roman Palmyra a caravan city in the Syrian steppe desert is rightly world-renowned. The frontal depictions of the deceased featured in torso-length portraits and the large-scale banqueting scenes are iconic and lent an added mystique by the absence of any literary sources that might aid in their interpretation. But while from a distance these exquisite portraits might seem rather formulaic when examining more closely it is clear that these scenes reveal a surprisingly rich and varied funerary décor. Alongside the more popular iconographic choices are singular scenes motifs and elements that deviate from the norm while new patterns and connections between Palmyra and its surroundings are identifiable.
This volume which draws on the vast materials gathered under the auspices of the Palmyra Portrait Project directed by Professor Rubina Raja explores the ‘oddities’ raised by the Palmyrene corpus; it examines one-off scenes or elements and unusual or unparalleled iconographical choices and questions how and why such unusual choices should be interpreted. The chapters gathered here not only focus on these visual ‘hapax legomena’ in Palmyra but also explore the city’s connections with the art of Roman centres to the west as well as the nearby Hellenistic city states regional centres of production and Parthian and Persian sites to the east. Through this approach the authors engage with the visual richness and sheer amount of choice that existed in Palmyrene funerary art while also providing unique insights into the knowledge culture that existed within Palmyrene society.
Palmyrene Sarcophagi
While the funerary portraiture of Palmyra is rightly world-renowned up to now the corpus of sarcophagi from the ancient city has received relatively little attention as a cohesive group in their own right. Comprising sarcophagi banqueting reliefs and founder reliefs as well as sarcophagus reliefs most of these objects share a common iconographic motif that of the banquet although other scenes mostly drawn from the daily life of the city’s caravan leaders and their families also appear. The emphasis on the banqueting scene in particular reveals the crucial importance of dining in ancient Palmyrene society: for the living banquets were a marker of social standing and gave hosts a chance to honour the gods and offer an ephemeral benefaction to their fellow citizens while for the dead the banquet motif offered the opportunity for the entire family to be depicted together and showcase their wealth and sophistication as well as their connections outside the city.
This single corpus of material gathered through the Palmyra Portrait Project is presented in this beautifully illustrated two-volume monograph. Through careful analysis of the portraits and the costumes and attribute choices that appear in these images the authors explore how the sarcophagi were used by Palmyrenes to project an image of local pride while at the same time participating in the visual cultures of the Roman and Parthian Empires between which their city was situated.
Studies on Palmyrene Sculpture
A Translation of Harald Ingholt’s Studier over Palmyrensk Skulptur, Edited and with Commentary
This volume presents the first English translation of Harald Ingholt’s seminal work Studier over Palmyrensk Skulptur together with a number of studies that contextualize this important volume in the light of current research. Almost a century after its publication in 1928 Ingholt’s ground-breaking Danish-language monograph remains essential reading for all scholars of Palmyrene archaeology and iconography setting out observations on the typology and style of securely dated Palmyrene portraits and establishing a stylistic and chronological sequence that remains in use today. Included alongside the translation of Ingholt’s writings are contributions by leading scholars in the field who seek to introduce Harald Ingholt and explore the impact of his work in Palmyra as well as presenting a survey of all the portraits from Palmyra that can be securely dated by inscription. The translation and commentary have been realized as part of the Palmyra Portrait Project directed by Prof. Rubina Raja.
La colonne Aurélienne
Autour de la colonne Aurélienne. Geste et image sur la colonne de Marc Aurèle à Rome
La colonne de Marc Aurèle (Piazza Colonna Rome) érigée entre 180 et 192 de notre ère pour célébrer les victoires de Marc Aurèle sur les Marcomans et les Sarmates demeure un monument méconnu. Classés parmi les documents secondaires ses reliefs sont censés relever d’un style «décadent» par rapport au naturalisme de l'art classique. Ils marqueraient l'esthétique pathétique et «baroque» de l'Empire tardif et du Haut Moyen Age menant droit à l'icône chrétienne. De surcroit les reliefs «miniature» qui s'enroulent autour de ce monument haut d'une trentaine de mètres sont difficilement lisibles d'en bas. Ce problème détermine fortement le déchiffrement des gestes représentes dont cette colonne comme sa sœur aînée du Forum de Trajan présente l'un des corpus les plus riches.
Les enquêtes concentriques de ce volume restituent à cette œuvre d'art exceptionnelle la place qui lui revient dans le «classicisme» romain tout en soulignant les difficultés du déchiffrement des gestes et les nombreux problèmes que pose leur interprétation. Formulées dans le laboratoire méthodologique que constitue l'histoire ancienne leurs réflexions seront utiles à tous ceux qui doivent identifier et décrire des gestes ou reconstruire des actions rituelles à partir de récits ou d'images. À défaut de livrer un dictionnaire de gestes «réels» des Romains du ii e siècle ce volume esquisse un inventaire de possibilités et des illusions qui guettent le chercheur lorsqu'il essaie d'identifier les gestes traduisant l'action.