middle helladic to the late helladic i shaft graves 11 страница

Whatever the scale, the temple interior was not designed for large group rituals but was meant to convey a sense of awe in the visitor as he or she entered the dwelling of the deity, leaving the bright open area in front of the temple and entering the darker, enclosed interior. At Delphi, the cella was the place of the oracle itself, and so was modi­fied. An underground chamber below the level of the naos enclosed the omphalos, the stone that was the “navel” of the earth, a tripod set over the fissure, and a statue of Apollo. The Pythia would sit in the tripod to await the trance in which the oracle would be received from Apollo. The oracle would then be pronounced to the petitioner.

The interior of the Temple of Concord at Akragas/Agrigento does give a sense of the enclosed and removed space of the naos (Figure 7.13). Many temples today have only the exterior colonnade left

7.11 General plan of the Greek temple and its components. Adapted by Christine Dent from J. Travlos, Pictorial Dictionary of Ancient Athens (New York, 1971), fig. 263.

1: Pronaos; 2: Naos or Cella; 3: Opisthodomos; 4: Stereobate; 5: Colonnade or Peristyle; 6: Stylobate; 7: Anta; 8: Columns in Antis.

7.12

7.13 Interior of the Temple of Concord at Akragas/Agrigento, c. 440-430 bce. Sculpture: Piergorgio Colombara, In Prison, 2009; Aaron Young, Purple Rain, 2009;

Francesco Messina, Bianca, 1938-1990; Daniel Spoerri, The Skull Tree, 1993; Paolo delle Monache, Eulogy of the Hands, 2009. Photo: author. Reproduction courtesy of the artists and Bortolami Gallery, New York.

strive to build temples that rivaled those of other cities, as we shall see in other chapters, but this would be through the manipulation of materials, proportions, furnishings, and siting within the framework of the orders.

other buildings of the sanctuary

As the views and plans of Olympia, Delphi, and the Acropolis show, sanctuaries were filled with a number of other structures besides temples and altars. At Panhellenic sites like Delphi and Olympia, treasuries were quite prominent and were placed in highly visible locations. A treasury was a relatively small structure made of marble or limestone, and typically consisted of a rectangular naos with a pronaos and columns in antis, virtually a replica of the temple interior, as can be seen in the reconstructed Athenian Treasury at Delphi (Figure 7.14; see 223 in Figure 7.2, page 157). Indeed, their plan recalls the earliest temple structures before the development of exterior colonnades.

The function of the treasuries was limited but important for the polis. At Panhellenic sanctuaries like Delphi and Olympia, treasuries were built by poleis and housed their civic dedications, as well as those made by their citizens. Indeed, just as the polis claimed the prerogative for law in early Greece, it also claimed authority over the dedications of its citizens at sites like Delphi. The treasury and its contents were meant to proclaim the status and preeminence of the city among the Greeks. For example, Pausanias (10.11.5-6) tells us that the Athenians built their treasury with spoils from their victory at the Battle of Marathon in 490 bce, and a platform on the south side of the building dis­played trophies of that battle. The Siphnian Treasury, seen in the reconstruction in Figure 7.15, was built with revenues from the silver mines on the island of Siphnos, whose citizens erected the treas­ury as an offering to the gods for their fortune (Paus. 10.11.2). Unfortunately, the mines were flooded around 525 when, according to Herodotos (3.57), pirates attacked the island. Both of these buildings would have been conspicuous along the Sacred Way, impressing the visitor with the importance and piety of the cities dedicating them.

The placement of a treasury, or of a major sculptural monument, would have been a key factor in its motivation and construction. As the plan at Delphi shows, some monuments have greater visibility than others and the construction of buildings like these would have required negotiation with the amphictyony, the group that oversaw that sanctuary. The Siphnian Treasury was one of the earliest buildings following the destruction of 548 bce, and originally would have been visible for some distance along the first leg of the Sacred Way when it was built around 525 (see Figure 7.2, 122, page 157). The construction of a new building, like the Sikyonian Treasury (121, at the left side of Figure 7.15), would have obscured much of the visitor’s view of its slightly earlier neighbor when it was built about a quarter-century later. In placing the Athenian Treasury, that city was able to secure a spot at the switchback, so that its southern side was completely exposed to the viewer when turning to ascend toward the Temple of Apollo. The trophies from the victory at Marathon would have been prominently displayed, reminding the visitor of the triumph and importance of Athens. Its visibility and prominence at the site, reflected in its currently

There were other special building types in sanctuaries. A glance at the reconstruction of Olympia shows a round building inside the western temenos wall (see Figure 7.3, page 158). This type of small structure, generally featuring a cylindrical cella surrounded by a circular colonnade, is called a tholos after earlier Bronze Age tombs (see Figure 3.7, page 57). At Olympia it was begun by and dedicated to Philip of Macedon after the Battle of Chaironeia in 338 bce and called the Philippeion in his honor. It had an Ionic colonnade on the exterior; inside were statues of Philip and the Macedonian royal house framed by a decorative colonnade made up of Corinthian half-columns projecting from the wall. Earlier round structures from the fourth century are found at Delphi and Epidauros (see Figure 12.2, page 290); the exterior of these had a Doric colonnade, with a Corinthian colonnade on the interior. The dedication and purpose of the Delphic tholos are uncertain, but the tholos at Epidauros served the cult of Asklepios and the labyrinth underneath its center may have contained the cultic snakes. An even earlier round structure was built in the Agora at Athens (see Figure 5.7, page 106). This non-sanctuary structure served as an administrative and dining area for the Athenian boule. The remains of the entablature of an archaic sixth-century round structure were also found beneath the Sikyonian Treasury at Delphi, so that the history of the circular building is long and varied. These tholoi would have stood out visually from the other buildings in the sanctuary, but they seemed to have served no consistent purpose.

We can also see at many sanctuaries a theater (see Figure 7.2, page 157; Figure 7.4, page 160; Figure 12.3, page 291). While today we think of theater as a secular art form, tragedy and comedy both originated in the performance of choral songs in the festivals of Dionysos. The early theaters were generally a rectangular open space flanked by slopes for the spectators, but by the fourth cen­tury a specific design was developed. We will discuss the design of the theater at Epidauros in more detail in Chapter 12, but the distinctive architectural elements are a circular performance area, the

orchestra, a structure on one side that housed the scenery, and banks of circular seating rising above. The theater at Athens, which may have been the model for Epidauros and may have been designed by the same architect, Polykleitos the Younger, was next to a small Temple of Dionysos on the slope of the Acropolis. Other open structures in sanctuaries, such as the stadion, were for races and ath­letic competitions and can be seen in the reconstructions of Olympia and Epidauros (see Figure 7.3, page 158; Figure 12.1, page 289).

rituals and offerings

Before looking at the offerings of individuals at sanctuaries, we need to emphasize that the physical setting has to be considered along with the rituals that were performed there and framed the experience of both participants and visitors. Sports and comedies provided thrills and entertain­ment, but these were parts of larger ritual performances and served to negotiate the relationships of individuals within the community and to the gods. The gods could provide many blessings, but also many difficulties, and one’s behavior needed to be mindful of one’s place in the kosmos, a word that originally meant order.

The men carry wreaths, knives, a pitcher, and tethers to assist with the sacrifice. Under the left handle, the end of the procession is marked by a cart drawn by donkeys with three figures and a driver, followed by a man with a staff.

The column behind Athena might be a symbolic reference to a temple building that would house a cult statue, but freestanding columns could also be found in sanctuaries. If it signifies an entire building, it shows the greater significance of the altar for ritual and worship and the temple’s role as a stage. The statue and column signify the goddess’s awareness and acceptance of the sacrifice. The dif­fering roles of the ritual’s participants on the dish remind us that these were organized and defined proceedings that involved offerings (the bull), invocations, libations, music, and solemn behavior, particularly when compared to the more boisterous figures on the other side of the dish. These figures may represent another aspect of the ritual, perhaps at a later and more celebratory moment, or a dif­ferent occasion altogether. In either case, it is a reminder that rituals included festivities and celebra­tion as well as solemnity. The feasting, athletic games, plays, and other performances were both engaging and formal and served as shared experiences to define religious, civic, and social identity.

Another procession from a red-figure krater a century later is more true-to-life in its representational style, but equally symbolic (Figure 7.17). From the left side, we see three men wearing robes and laurel crowns, paused with a bull in front of an incense burner. One of them holds a phiale, a shallow bowl used to pour libations of wine. A youth turns back to look at them while a kanephoros advances to the right, carrying a very elaborate kanous of implements on her head. She is wearing several layers of clothing, including an ornately decorated tunic on top. On the right side we can see two Doric columns supporting a lintel, a clearer sign of a temple structure. Before it stands a bearded priest who receives the procession, looking upward toward the top of the basket. Between the columns sits Apollo on a throne holding a laurel branch. Two tripods flank him, one of which stands on a round stone, the omphalos of Delphi. The picture, then, signifies the tripod that stood on the omphalos inside the Temple of Apollo at Delphi, in which the priestess would sit waiting to receive the god’s prophecy. Apollo sits on a platform, and it is ambiguous whether we are to understand his figure as a statue, like the seated figure of Zeus at Olympia, or the god himself, or both simultaneously. The more naturalistic style makes the ambiguity of statue or deity even stronger than in archaic art, and given the context of the importance of the oracle at Delphi, serves to remind the viewer of Apollo’s role as source of the oracles.

The scene on the other side of the vase shows the return of Hephaistos to Mount Olympos, in which Dionysos used wine to help persuade the god to come back and free Hera from the chair he had made as a trap for her. Dionysos also had a festival at Delphi, and the performances in the theater there would be part of his cult. As a mixing bowl for wine and water, a scene with Dionysos would be quite suitable for the krater, and the lower frieze shows satyrs chasing maenads all the way around the vase. The maenads, female followers of Dionysos, carry either a torch or a large podded branch called a thyrsos. The central satyr has dropped his drinking horn to chase the maenads, making this a ritual that has now deteriorated into chaos. The scene is festive and amusing, but also a reminder for celebrators drinking wine from the krater of the line between revelry and disorder.

Sacrifices were not the only offerings that could be made to the gods. As we have seen, the treasuries were built by poleis as gifts, and we saw in Chapter 4 that sanctuaries like Olympia were filled with small bronzes, terracottas, and tripods even in the Geometric period. These offerings are usually called votives or votive offerings, a term that in a limited sense means something done in fulfillment of a vow, but more broadly represents an offering dedicated to the gods. These could be civic, group, or individual gifts, and consisted of statues in a wide range of materials and sizes according to the means of the giver, of vessels made from precious metals and large in size, and of textiles and other works of art. For example, a statue of a young woman was made about 490-480 and dedicated on the Acropolis in Athens (Figure 7.18). The statue was one of dozens of kore statues that had been damaged when Athens was sacked by the Persians in 480-479 and is now missing its center section. As gifts to Athena, the statues

belonged to the goddess and were buried in trenches on the Acropolis, some serving as fill in the eventual reconstruction of the sanctuary that included the building of the Parthenon. The inscription on the base states: Euthydikos o Thaliarchou anetheken,

“Euthydikos, son of Thaliarchos, dedicated [me]"

The verb recognizes not only that the statue is given, but also that it was formally set in place, a ritualistic action that gives significance to the work. A later viewer visiting the Acropolis would see this offering, or anathema, and learn of the action of Euthydikos from the inscription by reading it aloud, as was the custom at the time, see the expense of the work, and recognize by all of this the piety of Euthydikos.

Most statues from sanctuaries cannot be connected with a specific inscription naming an individual, but some can. The kore of Nikandre (see Figure 6.3, page 134) tells us “Nikandre dedicated (anetheken) me to the far-shooter of arrows [Artemis], the excellent daughter of Deinodikes of Naxos, sister of Deinomenes, n[ow?] wife of Phraxos" A kore from Samos (see Figure 8.12, page 193) records: “Cheramyes dedicated (anetheke) me to Hera as an offering (agalma)" The word agalma in this inscription means not only an offering, but one that is pleasing to the gods. These inscriptions remind us that the statues are not portraits, since both Euthydikos and Cheramyes were men, but that these korai would be appropriate gifts for the goddess. Nikandre was a woman, and her work was

dedicated to Artemis at her sanctuary on the island of Delos. Nikandre was likely a priestess or administrator at the sanctuary, and the statue commemorates her service to the goddess, whether or not the female figure is meant to be the goddess, a priestess, or an individual. This statue, too, has much to ponder in terms of both its style and gender identity, and we will consider it further in later chapters.

Other reasons for offerings were to recognize that wealth and success came from the gods. These could be either a “first-fruit" offering, or aparche, or a tithe, dekate, as surviving inscrip­tions inform us. For example, the small bronze statue from Thebes of a nude man is generally called the Mantiklos Apollo (Figure 7.19), based on the inscription that runs up and down across its thighs: “Mantiklos dedicated (anetheke) me as a tithe (dekatos) to Apollo of the silver bow; do you, Phoibos, give some pleasing favor in return." The inscription sounds more demand­ing of the god than it is, but it reminds us that votives offered not only thanks for benefits received but also hopes for future benevolence. The figure, appropriately male for both the god and donor, continues the use of the ideal nude male seen in the Geometric period. As at Olympia, though small, the bronze figure would have been a significantly expensive dedication at the time. Even more expensive dedications like the tripods at Olympia can be found with dedica­tions of armor, including helmets and shields, or objects made of gold and silver (see Figure 11.7, page 275).

Terracotta figures and plaques fulfill the same function as their metallic counterparts, but were for those of more modest means and rarely have inscriptions. These are found in all periods
of Greek art, using simpler versions of the current styles. Those that do have inscriptions, such as the bowl from Naukratis in Egypt that we saw in the last chapter (see Figure 6.14, page 143), show that they serve a sim­ilar purpose. Scratched on the surface of the interior is the phrase Sostratos me anetheken taphroditei, or “Sostratos dedicated me to Aphrodite.” The verb, anetheken, is the same used by Euthydikos, Nikandre, and Cheramyes for their statues and signifies that the actions are equivalent in terms of ritual, even if they differ dramatically in terms of cost and visibility.

A collection of votives from a shrine in the Agora in Athens shows the range of subjects, styles, and forms of objects, but gives us a sense too of the accumulative nature of votive offerings in sanctuaries (Figure 7.20). The objects belonged to a deposit on top of an aban­doned Geometric house in the Agora, and range in date from 700 to 625 bce. It has been suggested that they belong to a small sanctuary dedicated to cults of the dead or to deities like the Furies associated with the earth. The offerings included terracotta figures of horses and men, cups, oil containers, and miniature shields. Some of these, such as the small Protocorinthian aryballos on the bottom row, are imported, but most were made locally in Athens. The most remarkable work is the painted terracotta plaque that shows a frontal woman with raised arms and snakes to either side. Holes in the upper corners show it was meant to be hung, and the raised, modeled head is similar in style to Mantiklos’s Apollo. This might be a representa­tion of one of the chthonic or underworld deities, since snakes are associated with deities who go between this

world and the underworld, but there is not enough specific information to be sure. While from a local and modest shrine, unlike the grander sanctuaries and works of the Acropolis, Delphi, and Olympia, these offerings were individually important and functioned ritualistically in the same manner.

Indeed, while many of the offerings at sanctuaries are modest, it is the setting and the action that give them a special meaning, as we saw in the discussion of agency theory in Chapter 5 (pp. 127-128).

The accumulation of offerings over time only enhanced the authority of and reverence for a site, and

the building of temples, smaller structures, and other monuments reflects both the status of the site theoria

and the donor, and stimulated competition among cities and individuals for the impressiveness of _{viewing or being a spectator}

their offering and commemoration of their piety. at a ritual performance

Barletta, B. A. 2001. The Origins of the Greek Architectural Orders. Cambridge/New York: Cambridge University Press. Kavoulaki, A. 1999. “Processional Performance and the Democratic Polis.” In S. Goldhill and R. Osborne, eds.

Performance and Culture and Athenian Democracy, 293-320. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press. Stansbury-O’Donnell, M. D. 2006. Vase Painting, Gender, and Social Identity in Archaic Athens. Cambridge/New York: Cambridge University Press.

Stansbury-O’Donnell, M. D. 2011. Looking at Greek Art. Cambridge/New York: Cambridge University Press.

further reading

Barletta, B. A. 2001. The Origins of the Greek Architectural Orders. Cambridge/New York: Cambridge University Press.

Barringer, J. M. 2008. Art, Myth, and Ritual in Classical Greece. Cambridge/New York: Cambridge University Press.

Jensen, J. T., G. Hinge, P. Schultz, and B. Wickkiser, eds. 2009. Aspects of Ancient Greek Cult: Context- Ritual-Iconography. Aarhus: Aarhus University Press.

Keesling, C. M. 2003. The Votive Statues of the Athenian Acropolis. Cambridge/New York: Cambridge University Press.

Lawrence, A. W, with revisions by R. A. Tomlinson. 1996. Greek Architecture, 5th ed. New Haven: Yale University Press.

Pedley, J. 2005. Sanctuaries and the Sacred in the Ancient Greek World. Cambridge/New York: Cambridge University Press.

Scott, M. 2010. Delphi and Olympia: The Spatial Politics of Panhellenism in the Archaic and Classical Periods. Cambridge/New York: Cambridge University Press.

Simon, E. 1983. Festivals of Attica: An Archaeological Commentary. Madison: University of Wisconsin Press.

Stansbury-O’Donnell, M. D. 2006. Vase Painting, Gender, and Social Identity in Archaic Athens. Cambridge/New York: Cambridge University Press.

the sixth century

(C. 625/600-480 BCE)

Timeline

Architecture and Architectural Sculpture Free-Standing Sculpture Other Media Painted Pottery

Textbox: Color in Greek Sculpture

timeline

he word archaic derives from the Greek archaios, meaning “ancient” or “old,” as well as “beginning.” The second-century ce traveler Pausanias used the term to refer to art pro­duced before the early fifth century bce, but as an art historical term it has since come to designate more narrowly the period between the late seventh century, 625-600 bce, and 480, the year that the Persians invaded Greece and after which we see the advent of the classical style. Very broadly, one could look at the archaic period as one of standardization, refinement, and elaboration, following the expansion of the Greek world in the late eighth and seventh centuries and the concur­rent experimentation in the forms of art, its media and subject matter. The architectural orders, discussed in the last two chapters, continue to be refined in their appearance and proportions, while the kouros and kore constitute the main form of monumental statues.

It is not, however, a static period, and we can see in the art of this time a development of more lifelike figures in all media. In pottery, the black-figure technique dominates, but we see the develop­ment of the reverse red-figure technique, which will flourish in the fifth century. Athens, a less important artistic center in the seventh century, becomes a major producer of sculpture and painted pottery in the sixth century, exporting pottery throughout the Mediterranean to both Greek and non-Greek sites, especially to Etruria. Architectural sculpture and painted pottery become major platforms for visual narratives, creating, in a sense, the mass visual media for the time. One might liken the art of the period to the idea of a theme and variations in music. There is a modest range of types of art forms and techniques, but a quite wide range of expression through the appearance and movement of the human form and the choice of narrative action.