The well-known narrative images of the Assyrian king Ashurnasirpal II (883–859 B.C.E.) at war and at the hunt are discussed frequently in studies of ancient Near Eastern art. By comparison, the iconic reliefs depicting the ruler, his genies, and the “sacred tree,” which are repeated over and over within the decorative scheme of Ashurnasirpal’s palace in Nimrud, part of modern-day Iraq, are less studied and imperfectly understood by scholars. This volume of collected essays on the reliefs at Dartmouth College and related works in other museums across the United States and in international institutions sheds new light on their meanings, importance, and history. Following the discovery of the reliefs in the nineteenth century, institutions and individuals in Europe and North America competed to acquire them. The greatest number went into European collections in the countries of their discoverers, but “surplus” relief fragments, usually of supernatural figures and trees, were shipped to America, and many found their way to colleges and universities.
The essays in this volume explore the iconography of the reliefs, the fascinating story of their discovery and dispersal throughout the West, their biblical connections, and their cultural, artistic, and historical meanings. The book takes the reader from the ancient world of Assyria to its modern rediscovery to the digital reconstruction of the Nimrud palace. Lavishly illustrated with over 115 color and 35 black-and-white images, Assyrian Reliefs from the Palace of Ashurnasirpal II will engage and inform the student, the scholar, as well as the museum visitor.
0 有用 龟掌拨清波 2018-01-08 21:13:16
文章围绕经1930级校友Austin Wright之手来到达特茅斯学院的六块亚述浮雕展开,一到四章关注的层次比较丰富,仔细读完第一章的话,会发现Art and Empire这种展览图册拍不到近处忽略了很多细节,但跳过五到八章多半是揣度的艺术史研究也不会损失太多。读现在的研究会觉得不能苛求Layard当时的切入方式和结论,可正是当年类似于寻宝的挖掘让这些文物脱离原生语境、变成流落世界各地的象征符号。
0 有用 龟掌拨清波 2018-01-08 21:13:16
文章围绕经1930级校友Austin Wright之手来到达特茅斯学院的六块亚述浮雕展开,一到四章关注的层次比较丰富,仔细读完第一章的话,会发现Art and Empire这种展览图册拍不到近处忽略了很多细节,但跳过五到八章多半是揣度的艺术史研究也不会损失太多。读现在的研究会觉得不能苛求Layard当时的切入方式和结论,可正是当年类似于寻宝的挖掘让这些文物脱离原生语境、变成流落世界各地的象征符号。