Following Odysseus Not the end of the world Amarna city of light ...

More documents

Recommendations

Info

$N ER\/A 1$

Ancient obsidian trade inSyria reflects current conflictDr Ellery Frahm, an archaeologistfrom the University of Sheffield,has revealed the origin andtrading routes of razor-sharpstone tools 4,200 years ago inSyria, where many ancient sitesare under threat due tothe current conflict.An interdisciplinary researchteam hopes this new discovery,which has major implicationsfor understanding the world’sfirst empire, will help tohighlight the importance ofprotecting Syria’s heritage.Obsidian, naturally occurringvolcanic glass, is smooth, hard,and far sharper than a surgicalscalpel when fractured, makingit a highly desirable raw materialfor crafting stone tools duringmost of human history. In fact,obsidian tools continued to beused throughout the ancientMiddle East for millennia afterthe introduction of metals,and obsidian blades are stillused today as scalpels in somespecialised medical procedures.Researchers from socialand earth sciences studiedobsidian tools excavated fromthe archaeological site of TellMozan, in Syria. Using newmethods and technologies, theteam successfully uncovered thehitherto unknown origins andmovements of this coveted rawmaterial during the Bronze Age,more than four millennia ago.Most obsidian at Tell Mozan,and surrounding archaeologicalsites, came from volcanoes some200km away in Eastern Turkey;this can be confirmed by modelsof ancient trade developed byarchaeologists over the last fivedecades. However, the teamalso discovered a set of exoticartefacts made from obsidianoriginating from a volcanoin central Turkey, three timesfurther away. Just as importantas their distant origin is wherethe artefacts were found: a royalpalace courtyard.They were left there duringthe height of the world’s firstempire, the Akkadian Empire– the Akkadians invaded Syriain the Bronze Age. These findshave exciting implications forunderstanding links betweenresources and empires in theMiddle East.Dr Frahm, Marie CurieExperienced Research Fellowat the University of Sheffield’sDepartment of Archaeology,who led the research said: ‘Thisis a rare, if not unique, discoveryin Northern Mesopotamiathat enables new insightsinto changing Bronze Ageeconomics and geopolitics. Wecan identify where an obsidianartefact originated because eachvolcanic source has a distinctive“fingerprint”. This is whyobsidian sourcing is a powerfulmeans of reconstructing pasttrade routes, social boundaries,and other information thatallows us to engage in majorsocial science debates.’Not only did Dr Frahm andhis collaborators identify theparticular volcano where theobsidian originated, they wereable to pinpoint two particularareas on the exact flank of themountain where it was collected.Such specificity was possibleusing a combination of scientifictechniques, including a portableX-ray analyser and instrumentsthat measure weak magneticsignals within rocks.The earliest techniques ofmatching Middle East obsidianartefacts to their volcanicorigins were developed partlyat the University of Sheffield byColin Renfrew, Lecturer in theDepartment of Prehistory andArchaeology from 1965 to 1972.Dr Frahm commented: ‘Studyingthe use and origin of obsidianreveals some compellingparallels with the modern-dayMiddle East and has resonancewith issues that the region facestoday. For example, we thinkthat invading powers, intent oncontrolling access to valuableresources, would have facedresistance to occupation fromsmall states across the regionruled by peoples who wereethnic minorities elsewhere inthe Middle East.‘A mountain insurgency couldhave resulted in a blockadeof natural resources, and thecolonisers may have been forcedto instead seek resources frommore distant sources and forgealliances with other regionalpowers to raise their status. Thiswas 4,200 years ago during the31Bronze Age – the parallels tothe recent history of the area areextraordinary. I went to Syria asan American after the US hadcalled Syria part of the “Axisof Evil”, and only had positiveexperiences there. The degree ofhospitality I encountered wasextraordinary. Perfect strangerstook me into their homes duringmy journey from Damascusto the site, which involved anine-hour bus-ride through thedesert. I was welcomed, fed,offered a shower and changeof clothes, introduced to familyand friends, and shown around.‘The current situation inSyria is tragic and precarious.It can be so overwhelming andheartbreaking that I have to takea break from it which, unlike thepeople who are living throughthe fighting, I have the luxuryof doing. Whatever the futureholds, there will be a lot of workto do there, both humanitarianand archaeological, and I’mvery much interested in theinterfaces between them. Howcan archaeology perhaps helpSyria recover from this?’• Dr Frahm’s original paper ispublished online in the Journalof Archaeological Research atwww.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0305440311004857.University of sheffield21. Dr Ellery Frahm, Marie CurieExperienced Research Fellowat the University of Sheffield’sDepartment of Archaeology.2. Some of the ancient obsidianblades, dating from 4,200 yearsago, excavated at the site.3. The site of Tell Mozan in Syriais situated near the border withTurkey and Iraq.Minerva November/December 20125
inthenewsMystery red head identifiedA fine, Roman, red porphyryhead, recently sold by theTemple Gallery in London,has been identified as that of aTetrarch, dating from the early4th century AD.Because of its Julio-Claudianhairstyle, at first glance thehead appears to belong to thebeginning of the Roman Imperialperiod, circa 50 BC – circa AD 50.But this retrospective look wasprobably intentional becauseany dynasty, particularly duringinsecure times – and these timeswere indeed insecure – wouldclearly want to proclaim itslegitimacy by linking itself to animpressive imperial lineage.There is a very similarexample in the Vatican (exceptthat it is a complete bust) thatis said to be Constantius II(d. 361). This bust, now inthe Museo Pio Clementi, wasacquired in 1772 from PrincessCornelia Costanza Barberiniso, unlike the famous porphyrysarcophagi of Constantine andHelena, it cannot be said thatthis item has resided on theVatican Hill since late Romantimes – but that is not to saythe bust has not been in Romesince it was made. This andthe London head are closelyrelated, made at the same time6and possibly in the same atelier,probably in Rome.The style of the Londonhead is quite different to themore crude style of porphyrysculpture emanating fromEastern Europe – like thatof the massive, full-lengthTetrarchs (scandalously lootedfrom Constantinople in 1204)that now stand outside theDuomo in Venice.Roman portraiture hadbecome increasingly lessrealistic by the end of the3rd century, as easily datablecoins show, and images of theemperor and members of hisfamily were hardly portraits butmore properly representationsof the high office that they held.The London head is inexcellent condition. The face hasbeen polished in recent times –during the Renaissance or later(there is no way of knowingexactly when) – but despite thisthe original form has not beenmarkedly altered.Still apparent is the ethereal,rather dreamy expression ofthe eyes and countenance, firstused in AD 313 or shortlybefore, at about the timewhen Christianity became theRome’s state religion although,in fact, this look is derivedFour views of the red porphyry head of a Tetrarch recently identified byRichard Falkiner at the Temple Gallery in London. This head is related toone in the Vatican and two others (still attached to their original pillars)in the Louvre. The back view clearly shows how this one was damagedwhen it was wrenched from its column.from posthumous images ofAlexander the Great, who diedin 323 BC, particularly on thecoins of Lysimachus (d. 281 BC).It seems to me that theLondon head is one of anoriginal group of four; the otherthree being the Vatican head andtwo other busts, still attached totheir original pillars, that are inthe Louvre. Like them, both theVatican and the London headswere also originally attachedto pillars. This is demonstratedby similar damage to the backof both heads. The back ofthe London head has a chipand the hair below it down tothe nape of the neck has beenre-cut and the back of the neckshows re-polishing. The surfaceof the hair on the rest of thehead shows some wear but there-cut hair is crisp and new. TheVatican head exhibits similartraits and this damage is clearlywhere the integral plain supporthas been torn away.This corpus constitutes agroup of four heads that wouldbe consistent with their being aset of Tetrarchs. The attributionis further strengthened by the factthat this group of four heads isnot replicated elsewhere.It should be conceded thatthe two examples in the Louvrehave been recorded as the headsof Nerva (AD 96-98) and Trajan(AD 98-117). There is also aporphyry head of Trajan in theGlyptotheque Ny Carlsberg,Copenhagen that is probablyco-eval with them, althoughit might date to the early 2ndcentury AD.Recent research, however,suggests later dates (early4th century) for both theCopenhagen and Louvre headsas the earlier dates that havebeen attributed to them arebefore Imperial porphyry wasmore generally available.The identification of this newhead at the Temple Gallery isan exciting event matched onlyby my finding, in 1993, ofanother porphyry (the head ofan emperor) that now residesin the Ashmolean Museum.Richard FalkinerMinerva November/December 2012temple gallery/claire nathan
Page 1: NOVEMBER/DECEMBER 2012minervamagazi
Page 5: inthenewsLost Roman town resurfaces
Page 11 and 12: Egyptian archaeologyAmarnacity of l
Page 13 and 14: Egyptian archaeology10monastic comm
Page 15 and 16: InterviewRoaming withRomerEgyptolog
Page 17 and 18: CleopatraIs this thewickedestwomanD
Page 19 and 20: Cleopatravoyage to Rome, where she
Page 21 and 22: 12Carnarvon, Carter& the curse of T
Page 23 and 24: 1511on 16 February 1923. The wild p
Page 25 and 26: Hand artA historyofGeorge Nash expl
Page 27 and 28: 69by handprint graffiti artists (7)
Page 29 and 30: Greek literatureto the silver scree
Page 31 and 32: when they are finally united (4). B
Page 33 and 34: humanity. God D in the DresdenCodex
Page 35 and 36: Mayan archaeology9. Painted limesto
Page 37 and 38: Exhibition534the great6all religion
Page 39 and 40: 11. Stone reliefshowing the godMith
Page 41 and 42: Museumof the pieces were obtained d
Page 43 and 44: 121314had strong interests in the A
Page 45 and 46: Travel342can be put to good use rat
Page 47 and 48: Travel112.17 kilometres long, has a
Page 49 and 50: Technologyof Classical sculpture an
Page 51 and 52: ookreviewsThe Pharaoh: Life at Cour
Page 53 and 54: In the saleroom GERHARD HIRSCH NACH
Page 55 and 56: In the saleroom GERHARD HIRSCH NACH
Page 57 and 58:
calendarofeventsto our understandin
show all

Following Odysseus Not the end of the world Amarna city of light ...

Create successful ePaper yourself

Delete template?

Save as template?