Images of Power and the Power of the Image. The Miniature Portrait Medallions of the Lagids
| N° d'inventaire | 21501 |
| Format | 17 x 24 |
| Détails | 287 p., numerous illustrations, paperback. |
| Publication | Bordeaux, 2018 |
| Etat | Nine |
| ISBN | |
Scripta antiqua Collection(113) The phenomenon of miniaturization in artistic production is currently the subject of growing interest. Among the forms that miniaturization can take, the portrait must be noted. The small royal portrait originated at the Macedonian court of Philip II of Macedon and his son and successor Alexander the Great. It subsequently enjoyed great popularity in the Hellenistic kingdoms, particularly in Ptolemaic Egypt. This study is intended as a first synthesis of the miniature medallion portraits of the Lagid sovereigns. The work is organized into three parts. The first is devoted to the study of the forms of miniature “portrait medallions” (supports, preferred materials) and to the question of the modes of representation adopted. The question of the functions and contexts of use of these specific images, as well as their reception, is examined in a second part, because from the functions and uses, from the conditions of commissioning, derive the iconographic types created and disseminated at a given moment in the history of the kingdom in a singular context. The question of the attributes of power is raised in a third part. Finally, one will find a catalog of the commented effigies, organized according to a typological classification. Miniaturization is a topic of growing importance in the history of art. Among the forms that this miniaturization took was the portrait. In the ancient Greek world, small-scale portraits of kings first appear in the courts of Philip II and his son, Alexander 'the Great'. Such portraits grew in popularity in the Hellenistic kingdoms that the latter's generals established after 322 BC. This book is the first major study of royal portraits on small-scale medallions in Egypt's Ptolemaic kingdom where such portraiture was especially popular. The book analyzes the materials that artists used to make these medallions and the established modes of depiction that they adapted for their royal portraits. It considers the functions that these striking medallions performed in the contexts in which they circulated. The book also explores how contemporaries perceived them and how this perception, as well as their documented use, determined largely the different iconographical types that this artwork took. Finally the book studies the attributes of power that these portraits gave Ptolemaic kings and furnishes a catalog of this important body of ancient portraiture.
Scripta antiqua Collection(113) The phenomenon of miniaturization in artistic production is currently the subject of growing interest. Among the forms that miniaturization can take, the portrait must be noted. The small royal portrait originated at the Macedonian court of Philip II of Macedon and his son and successor Alexander the Great. It subsequently enjoyed great popularity in the Hellenistic kingdoms, particularly in Ptolemaic Egypt. This study is intended as a first synthesis of the miniature medallion portraits of the Lagid sovereigns. The work is organized into three parts. The first is devoted to the study of the forms of miniature “portrait medallions” (supports, preferred materials) and to the question of the modes of representation adopted. The question of the functions and contexts of use of these specific images, as well as their reception, is examined in a second part, because from the functions and uses, from the conditions of commissioning, derive the iconographic types created and disseminated at a given moment in the history of the kingdom in a singular context. The question of the attributes of power is raised in a third part. Finally, one will find a catalog of the commented effigies, organized according to a typological classification. Miniaturization is a topic of growing importance in the history of art. Among the forms that this miniaturization took was the portrait. In the ancient Greek world, small-scale portraits of kings first appear in the courts of Philip II and his son, Alexander 'the Great'. Such portraits grew in popularity in the Hellenistic kingdoms that the latter's generals established after 322 BC. This book is the first major study of royal portraits on small-scale medallions in Egypt's Ptolemaic kingdom where such portraiture was especially popular. The book analyzes the materials that artists used to make these medallions and the established modes of depiction that they adapted for their royal portraits. It considers the functions that these striking medallions performed in the contexts in which they circulated. The book also explores how contemporaries perceived them and how this perception, as well as their documented use, determined largely the different iconographical types that this artwork took. Finally the book studies the attributes of power that these portraits gave Ptolemaic kings and furnishes a catalog of this important body of ancient portraiture.