Desde el zaguán

¡Ay! Come in and join up. We are going to talk about Heritage and Archaeology. Andalusian accent. You have been warned. 

[el-zaguan]

[dappledwithshadow]

Rik Slabbinck (Belgian, 1914-1991)

[dutch-and-flemish-painters]

Rik Slabbinck (Bruges, August 3, 1914 - Bruges, July 19, 1991) was a Belgian painter. Slabbinck Slabbinck was the son of Henri and Elisabeth Andries. His father led a workshop of art embroidery for vestments, flags and facings. Rik took classes at the academy in Bruges and at the Sint-Lucas in Ghent where the desire grew to go through life as an artist-painter. He was briefly led by Constant Permeke. In 1936 he had his first exhibition in Ghent and in 1937 at the Centre for Fine Arts in Brussels. In 1938 he built his studio, and later his home in St. Peter Molenstraat, from which he then had an unobstructed view of the polder landscape. After the war, in 1946, he married Lily Neef and they had two sons. In 1940 and 1943 he won Second Prize of Rome. In 1945 he was co-founder of Jeune Peinture Belge, but pulled out in 1947, along with Luc Peire, out back. From 1950 he left the dark colors of Permeke to evolve into the rich and bright coloring which characterized his later work. In 1950 he won the second prize for landscape painting in Santa Marghereta (Italy) and in 1953 he spent a long time in Provence. The main themes of his paintings include landscapes, still life, portrait and nude. He portrayed include Herman Teirlinck, Stijn Streuvels and Jan Vercammen. Slabbinck also produced numerous drawings and lithographs. Late 60s visited Vinkenoog and Lies Westburg (VPRO) his studio in Bruges for a TV documentary, which aired in the Netherlands. In 1992, an association Rik Slabbinck was founded in Bruges with the aim of keeping his memory alive.

[hellenismo]

Ἐνάτη Φθίνοντος/ Ἐνάτη μετ’εἰκάδας, XXII day From today’s sunset: twenty-second day of Skirophorion. The twenty-second day is always sacred to Athena. (Clay figurine of an owl. Early Archaic period 8th-7th c. BCE. Heraklion Archaeological Museum)

[italianartsociety]

[italianartsociety]

By Anne Leader

Painter, architect, collector, and influential author Giorgio Vasari died on this day in 1574 in Florence. A successful painter and architect in the service of Grand Duke Cosimo I de’Medici, Vasari is best known today for his Lives of the Artists, a collection of biographies from Cimabue through his autobiography. Published in two editions (1550/1568), the text has had a profound impact on the development of connoisseurship, art history, and Italian Renaissance studies.

Reference: Julian Kliemann and Antonio Manno. “Vasari.” Grove Art Online. Oxford Art Online. Oxford University Press. <http://www.oxfordartonline.com/subscriber/article/grove/art/T088022pg1>

St. Luke Painting the Virgin, after 1565, fresco, Santissima Annunziata, Florence

Self-Portrait, between 1550 and 1567. Florence: Uffizi.

Last Judgment, 1572-9, Florence: Duomo.

Cosimo I de’ Medici among the Artists of his Court (1563), fresco ceiling painting by Giorgio Vasari, Sala dei Cinquecento, Palazzo Vecchio, Florence; Photo credit: Scala/Art Resource, NY

[mini-girlz]

Bas relief of the Nymphs of Nitrodi. 

Center one is holding a shell to receive and distribute water. 

The two on the sides hold water vessels.

[italianartsociety]

By Alexis Culotta 

Roman Emperor Julian was mortally wounded on 26 June 363 CE following a confrontation of Sassanid troops near the Persian city of Samarra (in modern day Iraq). Born in Constantinople in either 331 or 332 CE, Julian, whose given name was Flavius Claudius Julianus, was the half-brother to Constantine I, or Constantine the Great. 

Growing up in Bithynia and later Cappadocia, Julian studied both classical and Christian writings, even becoming a lector for the Christian church for a brief period. His support of Neoplatonic ideas, though, among them an encouragement of paganism, was construed as anti-Christian and thus earned him the moniker “Julian the Apostate.” 

His cousin, Constantius II, declared Julian the Caesar of the western provinces in 355 CE, however he intended Julian to act more as a figurehead than as a foundational political presence. Julian, however, revealed himself as a pivotal political player, so much so that he was declared Augustus by his troops while in Lutetia (modern day Paris) in 360 CE. This proclamation left Julian and Constantius II at loggerheads, however Constantius’ death in November 361 CE precluded a resolution to the conflict. 

With Constantius II dead, Julian was declared the sole Augustus of the Roman Empire. He set out to reform government practices and do away with what he considered the wasteful policies of his predecessors. He also wished to regain the support of the eastern realms of the empire, whose loyalty had lain with Constantius II. This resulted in his final campaign into Persia to confront the Sassanid forces, a quest which would prove his downfall.

Further reading: 

Adrian Murdoch, The Last Pagan: Julian the Apostate and the Death of the Ancient World (2008). 

Portrait of Julian the Apostate, Son of Constantius. Capitoline Museums, Rome. 

Male Portrait Head, Probably Julian the Apostate, 350-400 CE. Archaeological Museum, Athens. 

Priest of Serapis, Perhaps Julian the Apostate, 2nd-4th century CE. Musée de Cluny, Paris. 

Portrait of Emperor Julian, 4th century CE. Chalcedony. 9.2 cm in height. The State Hermitage Museum, Saint Petersburg. 

[whencyclopedia]

PEOPLE OF THE ANCIENT WORLD: Antipater (Macedonian Statesman) 

ANTIPATER (c. 399-319 BCE) was a Macedonian statesman and loyal lieutenant of both Alexander the Great and his father Philip II of Macedon. As a regent in Alexander’s absence, Antipater subdued rebellions and mollified uprisings, proving his unwavering loyalty for more than a decade. 

Unfortunately, a serious disagreement between the two led to a once trusted commander being implicated in the suspected poisoning of one of history’s greatest leaders.

Read More 

Article by Donald L. Wassson on AHE

[archaicwonder]

Roman Terracotta Sea-encrusted Amphora, Circa 1st-3rd Centuries AD

[archaeologicalnews]

Bulgaria’s Burgas Showcases for the First Time 7,000-Year-Old Ceramic Prism with ‘Pre-Alphabetic Writing’

A nearly 7,000-year-old ceramic prism with what might be pre-alphabetic writing has been unveiled to the public for the first time by the Regional Museum of History in Bulgaria’s Black Sea city of Burgas. The prism-shaped prehistoric artifact featuring the supposedly pre-alphabetic signs on its four sides was discovered during the excavations of an Early Chalcolithic settlement mound near Burgas back in 2008, and has never been shown to the public before.

The artifact (and the Burgas Chalcolithic Mound where it was found) dates back to the Early Chalcolithic (Aeneolithic, Copper Age) – 4,900 / 4,850-4,600 / 4,550 BC, the Burgas Regional Museum of History has announced.

“The archaeologists believe that 7,000 years ago when the ancient people made the clay artifact, they put their own signs on its four sides. They encrusted the engravings they had made with white paste,“ the Museum explains. Read more.

[romeandserenity]

Roman Imperial Period A.D. 119

Obverse: Laureate bust of Hadrian right, drapery on left shoulder. IMPCAESARTRAIANVS HADRIANVSAVG Reverse: Hadrian enthroned on platform, greeting woman holding small child with another at her feet. PONTMAXTRP OTCOSIII in field: S C in ex.: LIBERTASRES/TITVTA

(X)

[archaeologicalnews]

100 Silver Pieces Found in Roman-Era 'Hoard' in Scotland

More than 170 years ago, Scottish laborers clearing a rocky field with dynamite discovered three beautiful silver artifacts: a hand pin, a chain and a spiral bangle. But instead of looking for more treasures, they followed orders to turn the field into farmland, squashing hopes of archaeologists for years to come.

Recently, however, archaeologists surveyed the field and uncovered a hoard of 100 silver items, including coins, and pieces of brooches and bracelets, all dating to late Roman times, during the fourth or fifth centuries AD, according to a new report of the find, which is now called the Gaulcross hoard. (In archaeology, a “hoard” is a group of valuable objects that is sometimes purposely buried underground.)

“We set out, not really thinking we would find more silver,” said study co-lead researcher Gordon Noble, head of archaeology at the University of Aberdeen in Scotland. “We just wanted to learn more about the context” of the original find, he said. Read more.

[italianartsociety]

By Alexis Culotta

Painter Giuseppe Pellizza da Volpedo died 14 June 1907. A native of the Piedmontese town of Volpedo, as his name suggests, Pellizza da Volpedo was associated with the Neo-Impressionist movement. He is noteworthy for his championing of the painterly technique of Divisionism, which, similar to Pointillism, involves the careful juxtaposition of small dashes or dabs of color to build form. One of his most celebrated paintings is the monumental Il Quarto Stato (The Fourth State) from 1901, which symbolically celebrates the new liberties afforded the Italian working class.

The Fourth State (Il Quarto Stato), 1901, Commune di Milano.

Broken Flower, 1896-1902, Musée d’Orsay. No. RF 1977 281, LUX 657, JdeP 289.

Passagiata Amorosa, 1901 Ascoli Piceno, Pinacoteca Civica.

The Mirror of Life, 1895-1898.

[historyfilia-deactivated2025061]

5 Facts of the Via Appia

The Road is named after Appius Claudius, the Roman censor who began and completed the first section as a military road to the south in 312 BC and was constructed in order to make a fast and reliable communication between Rome and Capua.

The Appian Way was celebrated by Horace and Statius, who called it longarum regina viarum, or “queen of long-distance roads.”

The first few miles of the Appian Way outside Rome are flanked by a striking series of monuments, and there are also milestones and other inscriptions along the remains of the road.

While trying to escape, the ex-gladiator and leader of the slave revolt Spartacus moved his forces into the historic trap in Apulia/Calabria where he was pinned between Legions that were brought from all over the Empire. On his defeat the Romans judged that the slaves had forfeited their right to live.

Below the street are miles of tunnels – known as catacombs – where early Christians buried their dead and, during the worst times of persecution, held church services discreetly out of the public eye.

[archaeologicalnews]

Whistling Sling Bullets Were Roman Troops' Secret 'Terror Weapon'

Some 1,800 years ago, Roman troops used “whistling” sling bullets as a “terror weapon” against their barbarian foes, according to archaeologists who found the cast lead bullets at a site in Scotland.

Weighing about 1 ounce (30 grams), each of the bullets had been drilled with a 0.2-inch (5 millimeters) hole that the researchers think was designed to give the soaring bullets a sharp buzzing or whistling noise in flight.

The bullets were found recently at Burnswark Hill in southwestern Scotland, where a massive Roman attack against native defenders in a hilltop fort took place in the second century A.D.

These holes converted the bullets into a “terror weapon,” said archaeologist John Reid of the Trimontium Trust, a Scottish historical society directing the first major archaeological investigation in 50 years of the Burnswark Hill site. - Read more.

[whencyclopedia]

ROMAN MILLS: 

THE  Romans constructed mills for use in agriculture, mining and construction. Around the 3rd century BCE, the first mills were used to grind grain. Later developments and breakthroughs in milling technology expanded their use to crushing ores in  mining and such construction activities as cutting wood and marble.  

Mills became an important part of the Roman economy, decreasing the reliance on human labour, and dramatically increasing productivity and efficiency in many sectors of the Roman economy.

Read More 

Article by Victor Labate on AHE

[artmastered]

Diego Velázquez, Las Meninas, 1656, oil on canvas, 318 x 276 cm, Museo del Prado, Madrid. Source

Another classic work that is referenced frequently in iconographical studies is Las Meninas, or The Maids of Honour, by the Spanish painter Diego Velázquez. The scene shows courtly figures at the Royal Alcazar of Madrid during the reign of Philip IV, whose daughter, the young Princess Margarita Teresa, takes a central role in the composition. She is surrounded by her ladies-in-waiting, a chaperone, a bodyguard, two dwarfs, a dog, and Velázquez himself, who stands behind a canvas to the far left of the painting. What’s strange about this is that the artist is positioned in order to paint the space inhabited by the viewer, though several clues found in the background of Las Meninas help uncover the precise identity of the sitters. A large mirror at the back of the room presents the image of a male and female couple generally understood to be Philip IV and his second wife, Mariana of Austria. Their positioning indicates that they are standing in the same space as the viewer, and so many scholars have proposed that Velázquez is most likely painting a dual portrait of the King and Queen, whilst the Princess and her gathering watch.

Furthermore, the male figure next to the mirror, who is either leaving or entering the space via a staircase, is identified as Don José Nieto Velázquez, the Queen’s attendant, keeper of royal tapestries, and possible relative of the artist. In his essay ‘Las Meninas and the Mirror of the Prince’, Joel Snyder argues that José is included to signal the end of the royal sitting, as one of his duties involved escorting the Queen in and out of rooms. I’ve always thought that perhaps the Princess is being prepared to follow her parents in Velázquez’s painting schedule, in either an individual portrait or as an addition to the portrait of the King and Queen. She had sat for the artist before, and probably posed for the execution of Las Meninas itself, so I like to think that this is a practical suggestion.

Whatever the case, Las Meninas is a complex composition by anyone’s standards. Though a number of observations are considered now to be solid fact, scholars have yet to agree on much of painting’s physical organisation and the stories behind the canvas worked on by Velázquez within the scene. The explanation provided here is certainly not an overall consensus, but it’s about as close as you’ll get. Las Meninas is one of my favourite paintings for this reason, and it’s a great place to start if you are new to the field of art history.

[archaicwonder]

Early &  Rare Example of Paradoxical Illusion

This very rare electrum hekte (only 8 known examples) is from the ancient city of Mytilene on the island of Lesbos, circa 454-427 BC. On the obverse is the head of Athena wearing a crested Corinthian helmet while the reverse shows two confronted female heads with their faces overlapping, all within an incuse square.

This coin seems like a perfectly ordinary hekte when the obverse is first viewed; it is only when the coin is flipped to reveal its highly unusual reverse does the importance and novelty of the type become apparent. Employing a simple but effective form of optical illusion, the reverse appears to show the same female portrait both to the left and to the right. The design is deliberately intended to confound the eye and engage the viewer’s attention in attempting to resolve both portraits independently of the other, which is of course impossible, thus presenting the viewer with a visual paradox.  The importance of this type, both in terms of numismatic art and in the wider context of Greek art in general, cannot be understated. It is a thoroughly novel, and never to be repeated experiment in paradoxical illusion on the coinage of a Greek city-state.

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