Cult of beauty - Minerva

Museum exhibitions
Chris Lightfoot in Minerva (January-
Febuary, 2010, pp. 46-9). Chinese art
was largely represented by perishable
objects, such as laquers. Carved ivory
and bone artefacts of an ‘Indian’ type
are particularly striking (Figs 6, 7,
8). It has been assumed that because
they depict women and so few men,
they were designed for women’s quarters.
No easily comparable pieces are
known. Stylistically they appear to be
from India, but it is known that artisans
sometimes travelled considerable distances
to practice their craft, and three
uncarved pieces of ivory suggest that
the furniture may have been of local
manufacture. The glass vessels recovered
from the site all appear to come
from the Mediterranean. Perhaps the
most striking objects from the Roman
portion of the treasure consist of circular
plaster medallions (Figs 9, 10).
Many of the scenes are easily identified
from classical mythology. While similar
depictions are known from other
parts of the Roman world, it is rare to
find what would appear to be models
used in a workshop. However, as these
plaster medallions were made with
suspension holes, they were obviously
admired for their own artistic merits.
To return to the original problem,
the excavators originally assumed the
site was the summer capital of the
Kushan emperors. Recent scholarship
suggests that while some objects may
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Fig 9. Circular
medallion, Begram
Room 13, 1 st century
AD. This depiction
of a child with
wings, clutching a
butterfly depicts
Eros and Psyche and
their mystical union.
Aphrodite sent her son
Eros to poison Psyche,
but he fell in love with
her. Diam. 16.5cm.
National Museum of
Afghanistan 04.1.17.
Fig 10. Circular
medallion, Begram
Room 13, 1 st century
AD. Endymion was the
son of Zeus and the
nymph Calyce. Selene,
the Titan goddess of
the moon, asked that
he be granted eternal
youth. According
to the myth he was
granted eternal sleep,
and is visited every
night by Selene in a
cave on Mount Latmos.
National Museum of
Afghanistan.
Diam. 16cm.
Fig 11. Gold clasps,
Tillya Tepe, Tomb III,
second quarter of the
1 st century AD. The
figure is of a Graeco-
Bactrian soldier, with
a spear and shield.
The figures are not
exactly symmetrical,
as the figure has
the sword hanging
on the left side in
both images. Some
elements, such as the
‘dragon lions’ and the
foliage, harken to the
east for inspiration.
H. 9cm; W. 6.3cm.
National Museum of
Afghanistan 04.40.245.
Archaeology tells a story of ancient
Afghanistan as a hub of trade, a consumer
of the most sumptuous luxury goods, and
an innovator in the arts
have been intended for royalty, the
place where they were stored during
transport may not have been a royal
residence. Chris Lightfoot presents
a convincing case for suggesting the
rooms were part of the palace treasury.
With this in mind, the objects
may span several generations, and not
surprisingly for an overland trade hub,
were composed of objects from many
different lands.
The final culture represented in
the exhibition can be broadly termed
Parthian, although these nomads are
best known further west, from Iran,
Iraq and Turkmenistan. The group,
who left tombs in Tillya Tepe (‘the hill
of gold’), show their nomadic heritage
in their mode of dress (horseriding
clothing) as well as in their opulent
jewellery. Because of their itinerant
lifestyle, status was reflected particularly
in personal adornment. In form
the jewellery is quite varied, but it
shows clearly that while the newcomers
were drawn to the wealth of the
Graeco-Bactrian cities, they had their
own artistic cannon. The end result
was unique (Fig 11). This is a period
of textual darkness since these newcomers
did not leave many written
records and, for obvious reasons, when
they are noted in Greek annals they
are treated as barbarians. The gold of
this culture was the focus of an earlier
review of the exhibition by Dr Dorothy
King in Minerva (March-April, 2007,
pp. 9–12).
In sum, this exhibition wonderfully
presents some great treasures from
Afghanistan. But the range of materials
touches upon a far wider region and
with trade routes and cultural contacts
ranging from Greece through to India,
the materials could best be described as
a Eurasian treasure. The accompanying
exhibition catalogue details the context
of the finds in a number of specialist
essays that are best read before seeing
the show. The saga of the survival of
the objects is perhaps the best story:
the keepers of these treasures could
easily have sold them so as to live in
comfort in a country free of civil war.
They deserve a huge amount of gratitude
and remind us that human nature
can be something to be proud of. For
the rest of us, the exhibition demonstrates
that what was saved is no less
important than what was lost. Humans
have a long history of destruction,
but thankfully, there are exceptions to
every rule. n
‘Afghanistan: Crossroads of the
Ancient World’ runs at the British
Museum until 3 July. Adults £10,
concessions available. A catalogue,
of the same name, edited by Fredrik
Hiebert and Pierre Cambon, is
available, British Museum Press,
2011, 303pp. Softcover, £25.00. For
further information:
Tel: +44 (0)20 7323 8181;
www.britshmuseum.org
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Minerva May/June 2011