Who Is The Seated Statue Of Gudea?

The artworks of Mesopotamia, Ancient Egypt, the Aegean cultures, and Ancient Greece have similarities that not only reflect objects and images, but also the media, style and representation. These countries were not always wealthy, clever, creative and powerful enough to gain supplies, but they all find a way to create art with what they had. They have all influenced on each other’s cultures and belief through their artistic values and ways, ranging from the materials and tools they use, position and representation of their monuments and their religious intent.

The sculpture portrays the God of Harvest, Dionysus, with his loyal satyr follower, Pan. A considerable amount of detail when into the carving of Dionysus; the multiple grapevines in his hair, his ceremonial staff Thyrsus, the goatskins and the cup of wine he’s holding are all symbols of Dionysus. The composition is very asymmetrical, and creates a contrapposto arrangement, which is distinctly Grecian (Gardner). It was carved out of beautiful fine marble, which also had another purpose in the way of making this piece of art last for many years. Along with the tree trunk between the two men providing support at the base, and the elongated arms providing more structural stability. The God’s head is even reinforced by his hair to make sure the head doesn’t break off. This sculpture is visually and aesthetically pleasing, but doesn’t serve a useful function, like textiles or furniture. Therefore, it is considered a figurative piece of art, which art that is very clearly modeled after real object or person(s), and is therefore representational

Fig. 1 Statue of Yuny and Renenutet, ca. 1290–1270 BCE.; Fig. 2 Akhenaten and his Family,18

The Gravestone of a Woman with her attendant is a sculpture created by an unknown artist and is now on display at the Getty Villa in Malibu, California. The sculpture is of a woman seated in a cushioned armchair, reaching out to lightly touch the top of a box or chest held by her attendant. We can tell from the sculpture that the women is of a higher class because of how her hair is done, the significant amount of jewelry, and the decorated throne that she lounges in. This sculpture is an extremely detailed Grecian gravestone made from a thick slab of colorless marble around 100 B.C.

Envision a world where the single purpose in life was to obey the gods who indirectly controlled people through your king. Rituals, duties, and praising were all part of a manifest to pass the tests of the Underworld to achieve eternal life after death. While this may seem like a radical lifestyle to us, this was how the real world was for the civilians during the Ancient Egyptian times. To truly express their fondness and devotion to the gods, people constructed works of art to represent this; remembrances of their collective significant figures in their locality were highly practiced in order to please them. In particular, the State of Khafre was created to honor their deceased king who held significant power in their society as a part of their funeral liturgy. It epitomized the repercussion he held over his nation and the respect he had acquired. The Statue of Khafre did not just illustrate a polytheistic community, but it also prompted the civilians to be respectful towards their god whom were expressed with kings through their practice of rituals, and additionally exhibited how their religion was ultimately integrated as an essential part of life.

When examining the statue, there is an old woman bent and weary. Her posture helps clue us in , with her age and health. The figure is dressed in cloth that hangs off her shoulders. She carries a basket that is filled with what we may think are offerings. Then on her head, there are vines that create a band around the top of her head maybe used to signify the festival that was going on during that time. The specific detail that is seen on this statue persuades us to want to know the story of this woman. Doing so, the process involves lots of research about the time and art. During this period, artist begin to introduce more inner beauty than physical beauty. We get to learn more about the structure itself, then settle for what is given and seen.

My second piece I want to tell you about is the Sphinx of Amenhotep III. This piece was made sometime between 2000-1000 B.C. The artist from this piece is unknown but it is believed that the Sphinx of Amenhotep III is a model of a temple. It is only about 9 7/8 inches in length, 5 1/4 inches in width and 5 1/4 inches tall. Amenhotep III had many statues completed of him and during that age Amenhotep built many temples and other chapels. By the looks of it, it just looks like a giant doorstopper. But this artifact has great symbolism. The sphinx puts two things together and offers them to the gods, and that would be protective power of the lion with the royal function. It’s a lion’s body but transforms to human arms and hands. It has about

Both Etruscan and Roman tomb sculpture function to memorialize the departed allowing them to move on from the world of the living and seeks to comfort those who have lost the ones they love. The two societies have differing practices in regards to death and therefore sculptures concerning the subject are somewhat different with a few identifiable similarities. While both societies seek to comfort the living and commemorate the dead this is achieved through different approaches. The Etruscan Sarcophagus with reclining couple from Cerveteri, Italy and the Mummy of Artemidorus from Roman Egypt are two examples of contrasting representations of the dead. When analyzing tomb sculpture one of the main questions is whether the work adapts a retrospective approach (presentation of the deceased as they were in life) or a prospective one (the viewpoint of looking forward to life beyond the grave). While the Etruscan sarcophagus gives a more retrospective memorialization through the depiction of the couple in a state of regularity the Roman Mummy of Artemidorus presents a more prospective approach concerning the deceased through the emphasis of funerary practices.

lips. In traditional Egypt, the statues and monuments were considered a bridge between the divine gods and regular people.

This sculpture was made to help people in need. The people there believe that this sculpture has the power to find the cause of the trouble and to help them in their needs. Medicinal things are packed and are sealed in its stomach and that is how the spirit is drawn towards the sculpture (Art Institvte

A lion-headed eagle with outspread wings grasping two more lions in its talons, a great vase with what is considered the coat of arms of Lagash, and of course statues of Gudea made from diorite are some of the artifacts recovered from this period. However, after the reign of Gudea, Lagash loses its importance to the region as a center for art and economic trade, and is lost for centuries. # Statues of Gudea Most timetables agree that Gudea ruled Lagash sometime between the period of 2150-2100 B.C., bringing peace and prosperity to his people during that time, and inaugurating a Sumerian renaissance, marked by literary blossoming,

The near eastern relief sculpture focuses on the ruler Naram-Sin as he leads his troops on a conquest. Throughout this mountainous landscape, his soldiers climb on solid ground, while the conquered float in chaotic space. The feet of those who have been conquered do not rest upon the ground, instead they lay in odd positions in the alpine space on the composition. The vanquished either appear to be dying or begging for mercy. They are all obviously playing a submissive role in the sculpture. This work has much in common with the Palette of Narmer. For example, the leader figure appearing larger than life in the portrayal and actively attacking an enemy who is in a clearly subservient position. Other similarities lie in the procession-like positioning of their subjects and armies, as well as a resemblance in the clear depiction of order vs. chaos. In this piece we see how the overarching themes of chaos and order are building on past

The two sculptures presented for this assignment are the Statue of Gudea, which dates back to 2090 B.C. (“Statue of Gudea,” 2000) and The Royal Acquaintances Memi and Sabu, which dates back to 2575–2465 B.C. (“The Royal Acquaintances Memi and Sabu,” 2000). Both statues represent people; however, they depict different types of people from completely different time periods and cultural backgrounds. The Statue of Gudea shows the ruler of southern Mesopotamian, Gudea, whose reign was from 2144-2124 B.C. (“The votive statue of Gudea: A formal analysis,” 2011) sitting in a praying position with his hands locked and his eyes forward. He is dressed in what appears to be a lavish robe with an inscription that clearly depicts what Gudea thought of himself and his successes during his time as ruler. The Royal Acquaintances Memi and Sabu represent what is thought to be a married ancient Egyptian couple who are lovingly embracing each other. Aside from looking at

Differences arise when we look to the function of the two pieces. ‘The Royal Acquaintances Memi and Sabu’ depicts what we assume to be a man and wife posing together. This type of statue was placed in a tomb. It served a religious purpose as the Egyptians held the belief that the spirits of the deceased could come to the statue as a means of benefitting from the gifts that were left in the tomb. (The Royal Acquaintances Memi and Sabu, n.d.)

It is moreover pyramidal in structure with the vertex coinciding with Mary’s head. The base of the sculpture depicts the rock of Golgotha and is broader than the progressive