The Search for Alexander - an Exhibition

214 Pages·1980·29.39 MB·English

by  Nicholas Yalouris

THE SEARCH
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IV
AN
EXHIBITION

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NATIONALGALLERYOFART,WASHINGTON
MUSEUMOFFINEARTS,BOSTON
TSMUSEUMSOFSANFRANCISCO
INSPECTORGENERALOFANTlQli'TlESOFGRI
PROFESSOROFARCHAE
KATERINARHOMIOPOULOl
ARCHAEOLOGICALMlSElMOFTHESSALONI
ARIELHERRMANN
FELLOWFORRESEARCH
CORNELIUSVERMEULE
INEARTS BOSTON
m,i
THEGREEKMINISTRY
OFCILTl REANDSCIENCES
NEW YORKGRAPHICSOCIETY
FOR ALfXANDER
.
ThispublicationwasproducedfortheexhibitionattheNationalGallen'ofArt.
Washington,D.C..Novemberi6, 1980-April5. 1981:theArtInstituteof
Chicago.May14, 1981-September7. 1981;theMuseumofFine.Arts.Boston.
October23. 1981-January10. 1982:andTheFineArtsMuseumsofSanFran-
cisco:M.H.deYoungMemorialMuseum.February19. 1982-May16.1982.
TheexhibitionTheSearchforAlexanderhasbeenmadepossiblebytheNational
BankofGreeceandTimeIncorporated,andwiththecooperationoftheGreek
MinistryofCultureandSciences.
EssaysbyNicholasYalourisandKaterinaRhomiopoulou.andillustrationsofand
catalogueentriesforobjectsloanedbythemuseumsofGreece,
Copyright© 1980bytheGreekMinistryofCultureandSciences.
jCEeasctstasa'lyofgrbuyoemMeatnhnteoril\eisesrbg.yiAn.AnardireeoxlnciHakveoasrt.rimoaannnsdn.,iClolCuposyptryriartgiihgothnstg©of1a19n98d800cbabytyaMlAoargniuoeellieHsnetr.riAre.msnadfnroonrmkoobs-.
CatalogueentriesbyCorneliusVermeule.Copyright(g1980CorneliusVermeule
AllothermaterialCopyright(g 1980byNewYorkGraphicSociety
.AHrightsresened.Nopartofthisbookmaybereproducedinanyform
orbyanyelectronicormechanicalmeansincludinginformation
storageandretrievalsystemswithoutpermissioninwritingfromthepublisher,
exceptbyareviewerwhomayquotebriefpassagesinareview.
Firstedition
TranslationsfromtheGreek;EssaybyManolisAndronikosandcatalogueenmes
forloansfromGreecetranslatedbyJudithBinder.EssaysbyNicholasYalouris
andKaterinaRhomiopouloutranslatedbyDavidHardy.
Coverillustrations:Front.AlexandertheGrear. cat.no. 155(PellaMuseum)
Back.Goldchest(lamax).cat.no. 172(Archaeological
MuseumofThessalonike)
NewYorkGraphicSocietybooksarepublishedbyLinle.BrownandCompany.
PubUshedsimultaneouslyinCanadabyLinle.BrownandCompany(Canada)
Limited.
PrintedintheUnitedStatesofAmerica
CONTENTS
FOREWORD J.CARTERBROWN 6
LENDERSTOTHEEXHIBITION 9
ALEXANDERANDHISHERITAGE NICHOLASYALOURIS 10
ANOUTLINEOFMACEDONIANHISTORYANDART
KATERINARHOMIOPOULOU 21
MAP 22
THEROYALTOMBSATVERGINA:
ABriefAccountoftheExcavations MANOLISANDRONIKOS 26
COLORPLATES 39
THECATALOGUE 95
ContributorstotheCatalogue 96
Short TitleList 97
APPENDICES
PhotographCredits i88
SelectedBibliography 189
Alexander:RelatedWorksofLaterPeriodsLentfromGreece 190
FOREWORD
The search forour heritage is the essential quentlyevolvedinGreeceandhere,theycametoin-
aspectofwhatanartmuseuminourdayis clude a television series, and even the possibility of
allabout.AstheNationalGalleryhasbeen anartexhibition.
fortunateinmountingexhibitionafterexhi- It seemedto me akindofdivine happenstance,
bitionrepresentingoursearchintovarious forwhich the ancient Greeks wouldhavehadanap-
aspectsofthatheritage,ithasalwaysbeen propriate god to thank, that all of these strands
ofparticularpoignancetomepersonallythatwewere seemed susceptible of being conjoined in what has
notreachingtheone aspectofWesterncivilization's become the exhibition shared by a consortium of
roots to which many ofus feel the deepest kind of Americanmuseumsanddescribedinthiscatalogue.
affinity,namelythatofancientGreece. Fromourearliestconceptualizationoftheshow,
IhadtalkedaboutthiswiththeGreekauthorities it had struck me that the way to pursue it in its
on frequent occasions, starting in the summer of Americantourwasasasearchinreversechronology,
1974. A call fromThomas Moving, then directorof starting with the present, where we all live biologi-
the Metropolitan Museum, in September 1976, rein- cally, and searchingbackward into thecultural heri-
forced my convictionthat it would someday be pos- tageonwhichweliveculturallyandintellectually.
sible toborrowanexhibition ofGreek antiquities to No theme could serve better to dramatize this
showintheUnitedStates,andourTrusteesapproved essential human quest, to discover where we have
such an exhibition in principle. Only months after comefrom,thanthatofAlexander,whosefameover
further discussions in Athens in the spring of 1977 theagesequalsthatofanytemporalleaderinhistory.
camethe greatdiscovery, atthreeo'clockontheaf- That fame has affected the world's art, and through
ternoon ofNovember 8, 1977, ofthe tomb at Ver- ouraudiovisual search, supplementedby a presenta-
gina,whosecontentsformthecenterpieceofthisex- tionofselectedworksofartoflaterperiods, wecan
hibition. penetratebackwardintotheworldofantiquity,where
I first sawphotographsofthosecontentsaftera theexhibitionitselfbegins.
board meeting at the National Geographic Society, The show serves as a progress report, as our
when pictures were being made ready for publica- quest becomes more and more specific in its eager-
tion, several months later, by the National Geo- ness for data about the ethos ofAlexander and the
graphic initsJulyissueof 1978. material culture of his own time and place. It is
Subsequently, in a meeting that summer with fittingthattheclimaxofthissearchshouldbearoyal
Zachary Morfogen, David Finn, and Caroline Gold- tomb in Macedonia, which might even be that of
smith, I learnedofthelong-standingprojectinitiated Alexander'sownfather,PhiHpII.
many years before by Zachary Morfogen at Time A similar, but essentially different, exhibition
Incorporated, which had begun in discussions with precededthisoneinthesummerof1980inSalonica,
a Greek editor with the idea of publishing a book thecapitalofmodemMacedonia,inconjunctionwith
on Alexander the Great. As their ideas had subse- the opening of a new wing in the archaeological
museum there. This, in turn, had been preceded in tion, and his personal interest in the show's success
the summer of 1978 by a quite different but very hasbeen acrucialfactor. Hisableassistant,Ambas-
splendid show, incorporating some of the same sador Molyviatis; Prime Minister Railis; former
pieces, entitled Treasures ofAncient Macedonia. MinisterofCultureandSciences, DimitriosNianias,
The present exhibition shares aspects of both and his successor Andreas Andrianopoulos; the
theseillustriouspredecessors. Inemphasis,itismore Minister to the Prime Minister Mr. Tsaldaris; and
akintotheearlierSalonicaexhibition, presentingthe General Secretary of Tourism Lambrias have all
achievementofancientMacedoniawhichmodernar- shownakeeninterestinthisproject.Theclosecoop-
chaeology has revealed to us. We are particularly eration of Alexander Kotzias and, before that,
pleasedthat somanyofthese ancienttreasureshave Katerina Koumarianou has been indispensible. Mr.
beenallowedoutofGreece forthe firsttime. Atthe Harry Haralambopoulos of the Greek National
same time it shares with the more recent exhibition Tourist Organization and Mr. Alexis Ladas of the
an interest in exploring the impact ofMacedoniaon Hellenic Heritage Foundation have also been ofthe
subsequent world civilization. The American show greatest help. The Greek ambassador to the United
doesthis, incontrasttoSalonica,bymeansofanew States, John Tzounis, his predecessor, Menelas
audiovisualpresentationdrawingonthetotaltreasury Alexandrakis, and his able press counselor, Alexis
ofworldart, andsupplementedbyvaryinggroupsof Phylactopoulos,havebeentremendouslysupportive.
iconographically related works ofart to be found in We are immensely grateful also to the Greek
the region of each participating museum, together Council ofArchaeological Advisors, chaired by the
withasmall nucleusofobjectsgenerously lentfrom general secretary of the Ministry of Culture, Mr.
Greeceseenateachlocationandlistedonpage190. Sophokles Sophoulis, which supported the loan of
An exhibitionofthis kinddoesnotcomeabout theseobjectsforexhibitionhere. Needlesstosay,the
without the generosity and earnest efforts of an directors of the lending Greek museums are also
enormous numberofpeople. The key to any artex- especiallytobethanked.
hibition is the lenders who make it all possible. Fortheir financial support on behalfofthe ex-
Together with my fellow directors ofthe other mu- hibition, wewishtoexpressourdeepestgratitudeto
seums in the American consortium, James Wood at agreatvarietyofsupporters. OntheGreekside, the
Chicago, Jan Fontein at Boston, and Ian White at National Bank of Greece, under the governorship
San Francisco, I wish to express our deepest grat- first of Angelos Angelopoulos and subsequently
itude to the individuals and institutions who have Euthymios Christodoulou, has been most helpful, as
generously put these priceless and irreplaceable ob- have other agencies ofthe Greek Government, par-
jects in our care for the benefit of our viewers. ticularly the Ministry of Culture and Sciences. The
Paramountamongthesearethegovernmentandpeo- financialsupportofTimeIncorporatedisalsowarmly
ple of Greece. President Karamanlis was prime appreciated, and itschairman, Andrew Heiskell, has
minister during the formative period ofthis exhibi- lent hispersonal support forthis projectoveralong
period. AndIwouldliketomake specialmentionof essay. We are also particularly fortunate in having
Zachary P. Morfogen, Managing Director of Time the discovererofthe Vergina finds. Professor Man-
Incorporated's Books and Arts Associates, whose olis Andronikos, help the exhibition in countless
personalvisionanddedicationhavebeenessentialto ways, and provide an essay of his own with an
the success of this undertaking. His diplomacy and eyewitnessaccountofthediscovery.
enthusiasm have carried the project through irresist- OntheAmericanside,wearegratefultoProfes-
ibly. sor Phyllis Lehman for her early help, and for the
I would also liketoexpress ourgreatapprecia- curatorial departmentofthe Boston MuseumofFine
tion totheDirectoroftheInternational Communica- Arts, headed by Cornelius Vermeule. Ariel Herr-
tions Agency, AmbassadorJohn Reinhardt, forhelp mann ofthat department has been particularly help-
insecuringfederalimmunityfortheloans. ful, andthecatalogueentriesforthe loansfromout-
ThesupportbyMobiloftheaudiovisualsection side Greece have beenfurnishedingreatpartbyour
oftheexhibition is alsodeeply appreciated. Inaddi- Bostoncolleagues. WewouldalsoliketothankPro-
tion, each museum has had to find important addi- fessorEugene BorzaofThePennsylvaniaStateUni-
tional resources, and to all these generous donors, versityforhishelpfulcounsel.
credited in each location, we offer our collective Thoseinvolvedinmountingtheexhibitionatthe
thanks. At the Gallery, we should like to thank the Gallery and the otherparticipating museums are too
Congress ofthe United States for its support ofour numeroustomention. Iwouldberemiss,however,if
exhibitionprogram. Ididnot signalizethe importantworkdonebyGail-
The scholarly underpinningsofanexhibitionof lard Ravenelofthe Gallery's DesignandInstallation
this kind are also quite complex in the realization. Department in shapingthe show, togetherwith Wil-
ProfessorNicholas Yalouris has from the beginning liamWilliams,KentLydecker,andChristopherWith
takenthekeenestinterestineverydetailoftheexhi- oftheNationalGallery'sEducationDepartment.
bition, andinadditiontoallhisotheronerousduties Ancient Macedonia in the period ofAlexander
has found time to guide the selection ofthe objects the Great produced some ofthe most beautiful gold
andprovidetheverysignificantessayonthe iconog- objects ever crafted. It also produced an extraordi-
raphy ofAlexander the Great from ancient times to naryhistorical figure. WeattheNationalGalleryare
the present that is such an important part of this immenselypleasedby theopportunitytobringthese
catalogue. Workingcloselywithhimandspecifically threads together, and to participate in a search that
on the exhibition in the form ittook at Salonicahas ispartofthelarger,ongoingsearchforourcommon
been the very able director of the Archaeological heritage.
Museum of Thessalonike, Katerina Rhomiopoulou,
whose deep knowledge of the archaeology of this
period has been very helpful, and to whom we are J.CarterBrown
alsogratefulforherpreciouscontributionasthehead Director
of the team that prepared the learned catalogue NationalGalleryofArt