Название: The Cesnola Collection of Cypriot Art: Stone Sculpture Автор: Hermary, Antoine and Joan R. Mertens Издательство: Metropolitan Museum of Art Год: 2014 Формат: PDF Страниц: 480 Размер: 67.72mb Язык: английский
The Cesnola Collection of antiquities from Cyprus was one of the earliest acquisitions by The Metropolitan Museum of Art. In 1872—two years after its founding—275 crates of objects were purchased and brought to the Museum by Luigi Palma di Cesnola, who soon became its first director. This collection, with over 6,000 works, documents the art of Cyprus from ca. 3000 B.C. through ca. A.D. 300 in all major media—terracottas, bronzes, gems, glass, silver and gold plate, and jewelry. The distinction of the collection, however, lies in the stone sculptures that are unequalled in any other institution and that are beautifully illustrated and cataloged in this unique publication. The 635 large-scale stone sarcophagi, funerary monuments, and votive sculptures, primarily of the sixth through fourth centuries B.C., testify to the wealth and power of the individuals that commissioned them. The exceptional variety of types reflects the succession of rulers that dominated the island and exploited its resources, and shows influences of the cultural exchanges with other great early civilizations across the Mediterranean.