Egyptian and Kushite statues dismembered and reconstructed. Tribute to Charles Bonnet.
PUPSorbonne| N° d'inventaire | 14494 |
| Format | 21 x 28 |
| Détails | 200 p., 122 color illustrations, paperback. |
| Publication | Paris, 2011 |
| Etat | Nine |
| ISBN | 9782840507123 |
Since Antiquity, many statues of kings, gods, or individuals have been broken in Egypt and Sudan for a variety of reasons: accidents, wars, dynastic rivalries, and proscriptions. But they retained a sacred value for the priests charged with their upkeep, who often collected the fragments in hiding places within the perimeter of the divine domains, such as those at Gebel Barkal or Doukki Gel. Other statues were stolen shortly after their sculpture to be placed in settings other than those for which they had been designed. This is the fate of the effigies of sovereigns and individuals from the 17th Dynasty discovered in the sanctuaries and tumuli of Kerma, but initially intended for various sites in Upper and Middle Egypt. Others have undergone ancient or modern restorations. Several international specialists are striving to reconstruct some of these masterpieces, from fragments sometimes scattered across the four corners of the world. Thus the thousands-year-old temple of Amenhotep III, on the Theban west bank, is the scene of a “pharaonic” project dedicated to the reconstitution of a unique statuary program in the history of Egyptian art. Ever since ancient times a large number of Egyptian and Sudanese statues of kings, gods and other individuals have been broken up. There were many reasons for this: wars, dynastic rivalry, proscriptions, even accidents. Conscious of their sacredness, the priests who looked after them frequently collected the fragments and hid them in secret places within the temple precincts, as at Gebel Barkal and Doukki Gel. In some cases statues were illegally removed from their first site only to be re-erected in places far from where the sculptors or their patrons had intended. This was the fate of the effigies of the kings and nobles of the 17th dynasty which were discovered in the sanctuaries and tumuli of Kerma, but which had initially been meant for erection in various sites in Upper and Middle Egypt. There is a long tradition, from Antiquity to modern times, of restoring such statues which are often found in a severely damaged condition. Piecing together the fragments of masterpieces which have sometimes been dispersed to the four corners of the earth is the painstaking work of many international specialists. Thus the ancient temple of Amenhotep III, on the western bank at Thebes, has become the scene of a restoration site of Pharaonic dimensions dedicated to reconstituting an enormous number of statues to a degree previously unknown in the history of Egyptian artwork. Charles Bonnet, honorary professor at the University of Geneva, was director of archeology for the Canton of Geneva from 1972 to 1998. Since 1969 he has been working in Egypt and Sudan where he directed the Kerma excavations for forty years. He was also president of the International Society for Nubian Studies from 1994 to 2002. He is the recipient of honorary doctorates from many universities (Paris-Sorbonne, Khartoum, Dongola, Louvain). As a member of numerous scientific bodies in Switzerland, France and Italy, and through his association with the French Academy, he has played a major role in the development of European archaeology.
Since Antiquity, many statues of kings, gods, or individuals have been broken in Egypt and Sudan for a variety of reasons: accidents, wars, dynastic rivalries, and proscriptions. But they retained a sacred value for the priests charged with their upkeep, who often collected the fragments in hiding places within the perimeter of the divine domains, such as those at Gebel Barkal or Doukki Gel. Other statues were stolen shortly after their sculpture to be placed in settings other than those for which they had been designed. This is the fate of the effigies of sovereigns and individuals from the 17th Dynasty discovered in the sanctuaries and tumuli of Kerma, but initially intended for various sites in Upper and Middle Egypt. Others have undergone ancient or modern restorations. Several international specialists are striving to reconstruct some of these masterpieces, from fragments sometimes scattered across the four corners of the world. Thus the thousands-year-old temple of Amenhotep III, on the Theban west bank, is the scene of a “pharaonic” project dedicated to the reconstitution of a unique statuary program in the history of Egyptian art. Ever since ancient times a large number of Egyptian and Sudanese statues of kings, gods and other individuals have been broken up. There were many reasons for this: wars, dynastic rivalry, proscriptions, even accidents. Conscious of their sacredness, the priests who looked after them frequently collected the fragments and hid them in secret places within the temple precincts, as at Gebel Barkal and Doukki Gel. In some cases statues were illegally removed from their first site only to be re-erected in places far from where the sculptors or their patrons had intended. This was the fate of the effigies of the kings and nobles of the 17th dynasty which were discovered in the sanctuaries and tumuli of Kerma, but which had initially been meant for erection in various sites in Upper and Middle Egypt. There is a long tradition, from Antiquity to modern times, of restoring such statues which are often found in a severely damaged condition. Piecing together the fragments of masterpieces which have sometimes been dispersed to the four corners of the earth is the painstaking work of many international specialists. Thus the ancient temple of Amenhotep III, on the western bank at Thebes, has become the scene of a restoration site of Pharaonic dimensions dedicated to reconstituting an enormous number of statues to a degree previously unknown in the history of Egyptian artwork. Charles Bonnet, honorary professor at the University of Geneva, was director of archeology for the Canton of Geneva from 1972 to 1998. Since 1969 he has been working in Egypt and Sudan where he directed the Kerma excavations for forty years. He was also president of the International Society for Nubian Studies from 1994 to 2002. He is the recipient of honorary doctorates from many universities (Paris-Sorbonne, Khartoum, Dongola, Louvain). As a member of numerous scientific bodies in Switzerland, France and Italy, and through his association with the French Academy, he has played a major role in the development of European archaeology.