Relief Decoration Research Articles

GLASS BEAKER WITH MYTHOLOGICAL FIGURES FROM THE CITY OF PHILADELPHIA IN ISAURIA

Built in the region of Isauria - Cilicia Trachea, the ancient city of Philadelphia is located today in the north of the Gökçeseki village in the Ermenek district of the Karaman province. In 2015, a rescue excavation was conducted in this ancient city’s necropolis. During the excavations, sarcophagi that were raised on podiums were discovered. Also, a large number of archaeological finds were unearthed in an area of 10x10 m just west of these sarcophagi. The subject of this study is a glass beaker with mythological figures found in this area. There are very few beakers with mythological figures in the literature. These are a special group of glass bearing high relief decorations, produced through mould-blowing, a technique that was discovered some seventy years after the free-blowing technique of Roman glassmaking. The body of this glass type features four male figures standing between columns joined by garlands of ivy. The identities of the figures are a matter of debate. There seems to be a consensus on the identity of two of them as Poseidon (Weinberg's Figure A) and Dionysus (Weinberg's Figure C), based on the attributes they hold in their hands. Various suggestions exist for the identities of the other two figures. Six fragments belonging to the rim and body of the Philadelphia beaker were discovered. The vessel that has been partially preserved is identical in form and decorative scheme to the glasses that have been published so far. The glass beakers of this type were found in both the eastern and western provinces of the Roman empire. Their origin is a matter of controversy. They were generally dated to the 2nd half of the 1st century AD. For the Philadelphia beaker, it can be suggested that it also dates back to the second half of the 1st century AD, taking into consideration the other finds from the area, in which the highest concentration of the artifacts point to the 1st-3rd centuries AD. There is no evidence of glass production in Philadelphia or its vicinity. Therefore, the Philadelphia find must have been imported to the city. The fact that the fragmentary glass was found in the necropolis of the city suggests that these beakers might have been used during funeral rituals.

Polychrome relief decoration in the Sanctuary of the Hathor Shrine: preliminary remarks

The article reports on a conservation project carried out in the Sanctuary of the Hathor Shrine at the Temple of Hatshepsut in Deir el-Bahari within the framework of the Polish-Egyptian Archaeological and Conservation Expedition in 2023. The project, launched this season, aims to investigate the technique and technology of Eighteenth Dynasty polychrome relief decoration in the Sanctuary and to assess the state of its preservation in order to establish an appropriate conservation approach. In addition, an appraisal of previous conservation and restoration treatments in the Hathor Shrine was conducted. Preliminary cleaning tests were also performed to aid planning further works. The research led to a preliminary identification of deterioration factors, as well as types of damage to the limestone, plaster, and painting layers. Unique in this respect were the changes in color of the polychrome decoration and limestone, likely caused by high-temperature chemical reactions.

Preliminary Report on the Twenty-Second Excavation Season of the Archaeological Expedition to Wad Ben Naga

The twenty-second excavation season of the Archaeological Expedition to Wad Ben Naga focused on the continued exploration of the so-called Isis Temple (WBN 300). The works covered the south-eastern part of the hypostyle hall (WBN 301), a part of the central vestibule (WBN 302) including its front entrance, the entire southern vestibule (WBN 310), and a large part of the southern corridor (WBN 312). The excavation in the hypostyle hall yielded most notably many fragments of columns and a complete abacus with relief decoration, which allowed for partial reconstruction of their decorative scheme. There were also many pieces of modelled and painted plaster fragments apparently coming from the southern tower of the pylon and depicting King Natakamani and the god Horus. The stone-built entrance from the hypostyle hall to the central vestibule was found to be covered with relief depictions of King Natakamani and Queen Amanitore and Egyptian hieroglyphic texts. The southern vestibule and the southern corridor were recognised to have had painted decoration, which was especially well preserved in the southern corridor. Besides the paintings, a stairway leading to the roof of the building and a later burial of a non-adult individual were located there as well.

Meroitic building techniques: some observations from Abu Erteila (Sudan). Сonstruction materials and methods.

The article is devoted to the general tendencies in the architecture of the Meroit period (c. 3rd century BC – 4th century AD) of the Kingdom of Kush (c. 9th century BC – 4th century AD), local building materials and technologies that determined the distinctive appearance of Meroitic architecture. Construction activity under Natakamani and Amanitore rules covered almost the entire territory of the state. By the 1st century BC the Meroe district had significant resources and became a large centre of monumental architecture, around which cult complexes were built in the neighboring settlements, such as Hamadab, Awlib and Abu Erteila. This construction was achieved not only through stone mining, but also through applying advanced building methods, sophisticated brick-making techniques, and combined materials (mud brick and fired brick, iron and sandstone, wood and plaster), as the second part of the article describes the 1st century AD at Abu Erteila temple complex. The dimensional and proportional analysis and the description of the building materials and architectural elements used were applied to two small Meroitic temples (main one small ) found at Kom II in Abu Erteila. The analysis of the main temple's dimensions showed that its construction had taken the form of an Egyptian royal cubit (52.3sm). The preliminary excavations showed the proportions of 8:5, which had been recorded in the plans and facades of many other temples of the Meroitic period. The materials used for the construction of these two temples demonstrated the mixed technique of building used by the Meroites, when mud bricks were used for the main mass of the walls, fired bricks were used for the facing of the walls and the pylon, and moulded bricks of burnt red clay and sandstone were used for the architectural elements. Three types of foundations can be traced in the temple complex, which varied depending on the time of construction, height of the walls or specific features of the site soil. Methods to control swelling and cracking of the ground along the plastered surfaces with paintings close to the ground level are also documented. The various passageways in the two temples had thresholds of burnt bricks or dark sandstone, pilasters along the sides, and pillar stones for single or double doors, showing the well-developed construction in many temples of this historical period. Consequently, many of the surviving sandstone architectural details (columns, cornices, friezes, torus mouldings, water spouts, elements of relief decoration etc.) found inside and near the main temple, based on the unified style of various temples in the region, allowed to make an early general reconstruction of the temple.

Ребро кентавра: образ китовраса в визуальной структуре городского пространства

The article provides a semantic analysis of the theme of kitovras (centaur) in Russian medieval fine art. The author argues that in the system of relief decorations of Russian medi-eval cathedrals in Vladimir, the centaur is associated with the Jerusalemite kings David and Solomon and serves to accentuate the theme of a wise and righteous ruler. The study of kitovras images in Russian medieval art, traces the origins of this character back to apocry-phal literature or even further to ancient mythology, Talmudic tradition and biblical nar-ratives, which merged into a ‘Russian centaur’. The earliest kitovras images are found in Novgorod region in the 11th century. The typology of centaur images in Rus’, as well as the study of possible contexts for the use of these images in church decoration and in everyday life, make it possible to systematize the semantic and axiological connotations evoked by this figure of a man-beast. These connotations are associated with the ideas of (1) natural savagery, (2) demonic character, (3) duplicity, (4) wisdom, (5) architectural skills, (6) moral perfection, (7) saving pedagogy, (8) protection from evil and, finally, (9) religiously sanctioned author-ity. Since all these connotations are associated with the same character, the kitovras should be understood as a polyvalent symbol that reveals to viewers one or another of its aspects depending on a viewer’s semiotic code and on the visual and narrative contexts in which it is integrated. Russian churches open their facades into the surrounding urban environment and thereby saturate it with certain meanings, conveyed both by the outline of the churches and by their exterior decoration. Any figure, any scene and any character represented on external surfaces of the churches directly contributes to the semantics of the urban space, to its ideo-logical and cultural program, and functions as a means of informing both confessional and local identity. Such is also the function of kitovras images in the semantic structure of tradi-tional Russian cities.

Zur antiken Umarbeitung und Wiederverwendung von Grabstelen in Kleinasien und in den griechischen Inseln

Hellenistic and Roman grave steles in Asia Minor were usually produced and put in place for a unique, specific purpose and intended for eternal display at the tomb. We can see, however, that even long before the Late Antique period when the recycling of spolia became frequent, these grave steles were reused and repurposed as grave steles. The main procedure was to simply add a new inscription or to erase the old inscription in order to overwrite it with a new one; minor details of relief decoration might be changed or it even might be left as it was. In this article, I explore and describe this multifaceted phenomenon, which can be traced by examining the actual state of the monuments to detect the presence of one or more inscriptions, erasures and incongruities between pictures and text, as well as the chiselled-off or lowered parts and remodelled relief decorations. This contribution sets this phenomenon within a larger context between the two poles, one of which is the practical and economic object recycling, a familiar procedure that several materials underwent in antiquity, and the second of which is the predilection for antiquities and the re-use of old and valuable things in meaningful ways. The main procedures used to rework grave steles are illustrated by presenting some examples from across Anatolia; this selection remains, of course, far from exhaustive. If we consider the repurposing of funerary steles and other archaeological objects by applying the theoretical approaches of object biography and life cycle-management, i.e. taking into account all single phases of the use of a specific object, we will uncover new ways to understand those Anatolian grave steles hitherto believed anomalous. These approaches enable us to accept, handle, and integrate the different phases of perceiving and reconstructing ancient realities.

New data on the Pannonian glazed casserole handles

The casseroles with relief decoration handles are one of the typical groups of Pannonian glazed pottery in the 2nd century AD. The 44 relief decorated handles made in clay molds are mostly known from Aquincum, Brigetio, and Mursa, while – up until recently – only two molds have been found in Aquincum and Mursa. The new clay mold with Amor decoration, discovered in Brigetio in 2008, expands our knowledge about the production of early Roman glazed potteries. It is unique that besides this mold, a glazed casserole – made with this specific mold – was also found in Brigetio.

Author's stucco decor in Khabarovsk

The subject of this article is the stucco decoration on the facade of the administrative building of the Art Foundation in Khabarovsk. The description and compositional analysis of the relief decorations of the facade of the building are presented. Sketches, drawings, photographs from the archive of the artist Genendlis M.A. are published, which allowed to establish the authorship of the studied decoration of the building and the time of its creation. In Khabarovsk, a number of pre-revolutionary buildings and many buildings built in the 1930s -1950s, the so-called "Stalinist style", are decorated with stucco decor. Mainly these are stucco plant garlands with festoons, traditional rosettes, sometimes with Soviet symbols, made on the basis of albums of standard samples. A sample of the author's stucco decoration on the facade of the administrative building of the Khabarovsk branch of the Art Fund is a unique object of urban architectural heritage, an example of a decorative work designed for a specific architectural object. The reliefs placed on the facade gave the building its originality and became artistic accents in the surrounding urban environment. The name of the author of the reliefs was forgotten during the seven decades that have passed since their creation in the late 1950s, but thanks to the study of archival materials, the author was identified - the decorator and sculptor M. A. Genendlis, who worked for a long time in Khabarovsk in the field of theatrical and decorative art, sculpture and the creation of architectural decor.

Technical Ceramics from the Pottery Workshop at Sarai-Al-Jedid – Tsarevskoye Settlement

Technical ceramics – special devices for firing glazed ware – is a necessary component of highly technological pottery production. Analysis of the wares in the context of all the materials of the complex let the authors establish the specialization of the workshop and solve the issues of the craft reconstruction, identifying the origins of the technological tradition and organization of the workshop. All these possibilities of technical ceramics are of particular importance in the study of the rapidly emerged pottery of the Golden Horde, which reached a high level of development in a short period of time (not full the 14th century). The article is the first to present a set of devices for firing glazed ware from a pottery workshop III in the south-eastern suburb of the second capital of the Golden Horde, Sarai-al-Jedid, known as Tsarevskoye settlement as well. In addition to the furnace supply, the technical ceramics include the “kalyps”– matrix forms and clay stamps for applying relief decoration on the surface of vessels.

زخرفة الباربوتين على الاواني الرومانية " دراسة لمجموعة اواني باربوتين لم تنشر من قبل في بعض المتاحف المصرية "

زخرفة الباربوتين Barbotine هي نوع من أنواع الزخارف البارزة ، ظهرت على العديد من الأواني الفخارية وعلى اواني البرونز ، وکانت بداية ظهورها خارج مصر منذ العصر الحجري ثم العصر المينوي المبکر والمتوسط ثم العصر الروماني ، بينما داخل مصر اقتصر ظهورها على العصر الروماني وتحديدا في القرنين الاول والثاني الميلادي . تنوعت طرز زخرفة الباربوتين بصفة عامة على الاواني مابين الرقع السميکة ، البروز النتوء ، ، ونبات اللبلاب ، واوراق نباتية يخرج منها عناقيد العنب ،ولکن کانت الزخرفة الاکثر انتشارا بشکل النقط الفصوص . انحصرت زخرفة الباربوتين في مصر خلال العصر الروماني في الزخارف الهندسية الممثلة على هيئة نقط وزخارف نباتية لفروع وأوراق العنب. وفي معظم الحالات تملأ زخرفة الباربوتين معظم مساحة بدن الاناء وتکون هى الزخرفة الرئيسية والوحيدة على الاناء ، واحيانا اخرى تکون جزء زخرفي فقط من المنظر المنفذ على الاواني ، واحيانا اخرى تظهر على اواني ال terra sigillata . وتهدف هذه الدراسة الي إلقاء الضوء على نوع هام من الزخرفة لم يلق اهتماما من قبل ، والتعرف على طرز الزخرفة الخاصة بها ، ونشر بعض الاواني المزخرفة بالباربوتين داخل مصر والتي لم تنشر من قبل . Barbotine Decoration On Six Unpublished Egyptian- Roman Pottery Abstract: Barbotine decoration is a kind of high relief decoration, that appeared on many thin-walled pottery wares, specially drinking ware. It first appeared outside Egypt in the Neolithic period, then the early and Middle Minoan period, and the Roman period, whereby it did not seem to appear in the Classical and Hellenistic Period. Inside Egypt, it appeared only in the Roman period, namely in the first and second centuries A.D. The styles of Barbotine decoration on wares generally varied in the form of protuberances, splotches, thick patches, dots or cloves, ivy decorations and foliage emanating clusters of grapes. However, the most prevalent decoration style was dots. The Barbotine decorations in Egypt during the Roman period were confined to the geometric decorations in the shape of dots. The Barbotine decoration mostly fills most of the area of the ware, where it is the only and principal decoration. In some wares, it is only one part of the decoration. This study aims to shed light on an important kind of decoration, to recognize its relevant kinds of decorative styles, and to bring to light some of the unpublishedBarbotine decoration wares inside Egypt.

Stele for Magistrate Jing Yun 景雲: An Eastern Han memorial stele from the south-west with reference to the Chuci 楚辭

AbstractAn Eastern Han stele with an unusual relief decoration and 367 character memorial inscription tells us much about the south-west of China in early imperial times. Unearthed in 2004 from the banks of the Yangtze River and dated to 173ce, the stele was dedicated to Quren county magistrate Jing Yun who died 70 years earlier in 103ce. The paper provides a full translation, annotation, and analysis of the stele's commemorative text, which borrows from the content and language of one of China's oldest anthologies of poems, theChuci, and places it in its historical context. It also examines the iconography at the head of the stele which reflects beliefs in transcendence and the pursuit of immortality prevalent at the time and demonstrates its close relation to the inscription. Overall, the paper suggests that the decoration and text together exhibit a regional heritage that is distinct to the south-west, its memorial culture, and poetic and religious traditions.

Statues and Votive Vessels from Tulūl al-Baqarāt

Abstract The site of Tulūl al-Baqarāt in the Wasit province, Iraq, consists of a series of tells, the most prominent being TB1. Iraqi and Italian archaeological expeditions have conducted excavations at TB1, revealing a number of exceptional architectural units and a large number of ancient objects. This paper deals with stone statuary and objects with relief decoration from these excavations and presents several fragments of human or animal statues and sculptured votive vessels.

Non-invasive X-ray investigations of medieval sculptures: New insights on “applied tin-relief brocade” technique

Abstract Two polychrome sculptures from the late Middle Age were investigated by means of non-invasive techniques with the aim of characterizing sophisticated relief decoration named “applied brocade”. Here, we have used portable instrumentation solely in order to perform X-ray powder diffraction and fluorescence measurements at the surface of the sculptures. The results show a reliable localisation and identification of the different materials making up an applied brocade: a filler material, a tin-based foil and a gilding, even in the case of a largely overpainted sculpture. More particularly, a direct identification of the organic material used for the filler as natural beeswax is proposed. Differences between the two investigated artworks have also been identified: (i) in the structure of the calcium sulphate preparation layers (one or double layer of gesso) (ii) in the presence or absence of a priming paint layer under decors (iii) in the choice of the material used to make the gilding: pure gold or probable zwischgold. The characterization of the degradation of this type of decorations was also assessed, namely romarchite (SnO) and cassiterite (SnO2) were identified and their relative proportion estimated.

Lamps from the temenos of Allat in Palmyra

Excavation in the temenos of Allat in Palmyra in the 1970s uncovered a deposit of clay lamps with a few vessels and coins. Inside the cella, the lamps were clustered in two groups, a few examples were found also in the temenos outside the cella. All in all, there were 191 complete and fragmentary lamps, the bulk of them made locally in Palmyra. The assemblage reveals two trends in oil lamp production: wheel-made lamps with different numbers of nozzles and imitation of imported lamps moulded from archetypes. The assemblage from the temenos is of 4th century date, but many of the moulded lamps copy Greek and Roman types from the 3rd century, with Antioch-on-the-Orontes being a highly probable source of inspiration for Palmyrean lampmakers. Special in this context are rectangular multi-nozzled lamps with relief decoration, in one case menorahs framing a scallop shell and a figural fieze, most likely a Dionysiac thiasos.

An Investigation of Eighteenth-Century English Red Japanned Furniture in the Collection of The Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York

ABSTRACTThe decorative surfaces of four pieces of eighteenth-century English red japanned furniture, including a card table and side chair by Giles Grendey (1693–1780), were examined. Cross-sectional microscopy, X-ray fluorescence spectroscopy (XRF), Fourier transform infrared micro-spectroscopy (micro-FTIR), attenuated total reflectance micro-FTIR (micro-ATR-FTIR), Raman spectroscopy, thermally assisted hydrolysis and methylation-gas chromatography-mass spectrometry (THM-GC-MS) analysis, and scanning electron microscopy coupled with energy dispersive X-ray spectroscopy (SEM-EDS) were used to investigate the layer structure and material use. Analysis revealed the common use of a spirit varnish based on sandarac and turpentine, whose simple formulation is at odds with those typically suggested in period recipes for red japanning. Vermilion pigment was used for the red grounds, but different preparatory layers as well as materials for relief decoration separate Grendey’s red furniture from the other objects studied. More examples need to be examined in order to ascertain whether observations regarding process and material use reflect wider practice. However, results from this preliminary investigation suggest that japanners in England were less reliant on the recipes of the treatises than has been supposed, as well as hinting at the possibility of identifying idiosyncratic practices of particular craftsmen.

The gods bestow life. New material for the study of divine processions in the Vestibule of the Chapel of Hatshepsut in Deir el-Bahari

The decoration of the Vestibule of the Chapel of Hatshepsut in the queen’s temple in Deir el-Bahari resembles the decoration of the square antechamber known from the pyramid temples of the Old and Middle Kingdoms. However, the original decorative program of the vestibule, especially with regard to the processions of divinities, is obscured by changes and damage attributable to different periods. Two new blocks, proposed for the west wall of the vestibule, contribute new information on the relief decoration from the time of Hatshepsut. Egyptological studies of the decoration of the vestibule have also enabled a revision of the suggested architrave arrangement in this chamber.

Two Early Helladic II terracotta rollers from Asine and their glyptic context

Two Early Helladic II terracotta rollers from the Third Terrace at Asine are presented. The objects, used to impress relief decoration on pithoi and hearths, are unique in that no other examples are known from the Early Bronze Age Aegean. Their origin is discussed based on chemical characterization and their depositional contexts are reviewed from an archaeological perspective. Although there are no known impressions from these rollers on pithoi and hearths at Asine, it is shown that their owners surrounded themselves with different objects featuring similar glyptic impressions. Two such impressions find identical parallels at Tiryns and the combined evidence strongly suggest that Asine was the home for one or several potters who produced Early Helladic impressed hearths and pithoi.

The enlarged doorway at the Dejser-akhet temple of Tuthmosis III in Deir el-Bahari

The issue of the enlargement of the entrance to the Bark Hall of the Djeser-akhet temple of Tuthmosis III at Deir el-Bahari was a major focus for the Polish restoration mission from the start. The widening of the passage was noted early on in the research and new data was forthcoming with every successive field season as the decoration of the entrance wall on either side of the Hypostyle Hall and of the Bark Hall was reconstructed. More detailed information continued to add to the recreation of the process of how and when these changes were introduced, as discussed by the author in earlier articles. Further fragments of relief decoration identified in recent years as originating from the cut sections of the walls have offered new data to supplement the author’s view, being at the same time a significant source of information on the original decoration predating the destruction phase in the Amarna period.

Sigillata africana con tema bíblico encontrada en la provincia de Salamanca

Se presentan aquí varios fragmentos de un único recipiente de sigillata africana con decoración aplicada a molde, encontrados en un yacimiento situado en el término municipal de Huerta (Salamanca). La temática decorativa es de carácter religioso, correspondiendo a dos episodios bíblicos concretos: El sacrificio de Isaac y los tres hebreos salvados del horno.

Aneta Petrova. Funerary Reliefs from the West Pontic Area (6th-1st Centuries BC) (Colloquia Antiqua 14).

Aneta Petrova’s book is a most welcome contribution to research on the Greek colonies on the West Pontic coast. Based on her doctoral dissertation defended in 2005, it brings together all known funerary monuments with figured relief decoration from the region. To my knowledge, the archaeological investigations in the last decade or so have not added new specimens – at least not from present-day Bulgaria, where large-scale excavations have been conducted in the necropoleis of Apollonia and Mesambria.