Exploring Art: A Global, Thematic Approach

Chapter 9Mortality and Immortality

Early Tombs, Mounds and Mountains

Ancient burialsFurnished tombsDevelopment of cemeteries and grave monuments: Christian burials; Islamic mausoleums. ReliquariesModern commemorative art: cemeteries; memorial art and practices

Stonehenge—as well as—many ancient tombs is oriented to the movement of celestial bodies.

Stonehenge—monolithic rock structure

The earliest tombs were hill-shaped.

Newgrange, County Meath, Ireland, 3200 BCE

Egyptian Tombs & Mortuary Temples

From the Great Pyramids at Gizeh to hidden mountainside chambers

Still pillaged by grave robbersKing Tutankhamen’s grave remained virtually undisturbed until 1922

Decor included servant statues to help in the afterlife

Wall painting adorned tomb wallsFowling Scene, figure 10-4

Egyptians used the pyramid form to create the meeting place between life on earth and eternity. The pharaohs were believed to be descendants of the most powerful god, Re the Sun God.

PYRAMIDS AT GIZA,2525-2550 BCE

Fowling Scene, Thebes, Egypt, c.1400-1350Wall painting from the tomb of Nebamun

Mortuary Temple of Hatshepsut, Deir el-Bahri, Egypt, c.1490 BCE

Etruscan Tombs were very much like houses.The tombs chambers were carved directly out of soft bedrock called tufa.

Buried their dead in earthen mounds furnished for the afterlife

Around Cerveteri, a necropolis of earthen mounds organized into “streets”Tombs’ interiors simulate domestic interiorIndicate importance of sociability and the pleasures of living

Tomb artBanqueters and Musicians from the Tomb of the Leopards.

Banqueters and Musicians. Mural painting from the Tomb of the Leopards. From a cemetery near Tarquinia, Etruria (Italy), c. 480–470 BCE. Hirmer Fotoarchiv.

Sarcophagus with Reclining ouple, Etruria, c.420 BCE

Funeral Complex of Shi Huangdi

Shi Huangdi means “First Emperor”Ying Cheng founded the Qin Dynasty in 221 BCE

Underground funeral palaceDiscovered in 1974 as peasants dug for a wellUncovered an army of more than 6,000 figuresSoldiers from Pit 1, figure 10-8No two soldiers’ faces are alike

Soldiers from Pit 1, Shaanxi, China, 221-206 BCE painted ceramic; average figure height, 5’9”

Royal Tombs of the Moche Civilization

Over 350 tombs discovered in Peru during the 1980s and 90sContents of tombs varied widely

Indicated highly stratified societyFurnished tombs showed rank in societyWarrior priests had most elaborate tombs

Gold and silver used in symmetrical and matching patterns

Peanut Necklace, Moche Civilization, Peru, c. 300. Gold and silver necklace from the Royal Tomb of Sipan, 20” diameter.

The peanuts may symbolize ceremonial food or a food of honor.

The Moche used gold and silver symmetrically—even some nose plates are symmetrically half gold and half silver

Viking Ship Burial

Tombs reflect importance of sea travel to Viking civilization

Oseberg ship burial, excavated 1904 near Oslo

Elaborately designed shipAnimal designsWinding, inter-laced designsAlso seen in Viking jewelry

Viking Longship OsebergThe word viking was introduced to the English

language with romantic connotations in the 18th century.

In the current Scandinavian languages the term viking is applied to the people who went away on viking expeditions, be it for raiding or trading.

The medieval Scandinavian population is also referred to as Norse.

The curves of the ship culminate in tall spiral posts…the forward one is carved like a coiled snake.

Animal forms are interlaced in complex, lace-like patterns.

Cemeteries and Grave Monuments1st millennium BCE transitioned from mound tombs to other forms of funerary art and architecture

Ancient Greeks common monuments(The ancient Greeks developed the earliest commemorative funerary architecture in Europe and the Middle East) Small columns supporting vases, urns, small statues Life-size freestanding figures of young men or women Relief carvings on stone slabs

The Grave Stele of Hegeso

Early Romans Buried outside city walls Built tombs in several stylesModern cemeteries developed in response to an increase in urban

populations and concerns about pollution and sanitation.

The New York Kouros at the Metropolitan Museum of Art

Grave Stele of Hegeso, Athens, Greece, c.410-400 BCEGreek grave markers usually showed quiet, everyday moments.

Vatican Museum: Funerary Relief w/ Circus Maximus, Trajanic or early Hadrianic

Burial in Places of WorshipChristian burials

No cremation so body could be resurrectedCatacombs (vast underground passages)Used to bury martyrs, hide fugitives, worship

Christian status changed with Constantine

Legalized Christianity in 313 CETombs became increasingly ornate

Baldacchino, figure 10-16

Mortuary chapel of The Good Shepherd, the story of Jonah, and orants, painted ceiling of a cubiculum in the Catacomb of Saints Peter and Marcellinus, Rome, Italy, early fourth century

Early Christians buried their dead in vast underground networks called Catacombs.

Detail, Christ Figure, Deësis Mosaic, mid-13th century, Hagia SophiaLater Christian art became more formalize.This is an example of a Byzantine icon.

In 313, under the emperor Constantine, Christianity became the official religion of Rome. Old St. Peter's, Rome, c. 330, CE

St. Peter’s tomb lay in the ground—marked by six twisting marble columns and four brass candelabra, each 10’ tall and finished in silver.

Gianlorenzo Bernini. Baldacchino (bronze canopy)1624 - 33.

Gilt bronze (stripped from the Pantheon and melted), height approx. 100’

What the Barbarians didn’t do the Barberini’s did.

Westminster Abbey, is a large, mainly Gothic church, in Westminster, London, just to the west of the Palace of Westminster. It is the traditional place of coronation and burial site for English, later British and later still (and currently) monarchs of the Commonwealth Realms. It briefly held the status of a cathedral from 1546–1556, and is currently a Royal Peculiar.

Chapel of Henry VII, Westminster Abbey, London 1503-19

Large chapel, almost a separate church, on the back of London’s Westminster Abbey.The tomb established the abbey’s fame, making it a destination for pilgrims.

Islamic MausoleumsMost famous Islamic mausoleum is the Taj Mahal

Resting place of Murntaz Mahal, wife of Shah Jahan, ruler of the Mughal EmpireShows influences of many culturesAfghanistanTurkey Iran Indigenous India

Taj Mahal. Agra, India, 1632–1654. Built by Shah Jahan, ruler of Mughal Empire in India to honor his wife.

Taj Mahal mosque.The wealthy and powerful among islamic societies were sometimes buried in mausoleums adjoining mosques.

Reliquaries

Small shrines housing pieces of clothing or body parts of the dead

Popular during the Medieval periodSculptural representation of revered body part

Reliquaries from AfricaUsed in rituals to honor ancestorsExtremely influential in development of 20th century Western art styles

A reliquary is a small shrine which contains the remains of a holy person.

Reliquary Arm. ca. 1230. Mosan. Silver over oak; hand: bronze-gilt; appliqué plaques: silver-gilt, niello and cabochon stones; 25 1/2 x 6 1/2 x 4 in. The Cloisters Collection

Modern Commemorative ArtModern cemeteries

Severed link between religion and burialItalian cemeteries organized in gridsPère Lachaise influenced by RomanticismForest Lawn, in Glendale, CABenevolent, non-denominational cemeteryTombstones forbiddenTheme of “Great Art of Western Civilization”

Jim Morrison’s gravestone, Père Lachaise cemeteryStone placed by his father 10 years later with Greek inscription

“true to his own spirit”

Michael Jackson's grave at Forest Lawn cemetery

Contemporary Memorial Art Day of the Dead, Mexico

Mixture of Christian and Aztec beliefsParades and celebrationsDepicted in Diego Rivera’s series of murals, La Dia de los Meurtos 1923 Shows urban observance of feast day

Rituals commemorate dead and serve social needs

DIEGO RIVERA. Día de Los Muertos. Fresco. Detail showing the city fiesta. South wall, Court of the Fiestas, Ministry of Education, Mexico City, 1923.

Celebrated on November 2nd similar to All Soul’s Day.

AIDS Memorial Quilt. Displayed on the Mall in Washington, D.C., October 11, 1996. Organized by the Names Project, San Francisco

It changes every time it is displayed.

The Tribute in Light is an art installation of 88 searchlights placed next to the site of the World Trade Center to create two vertical columns of light in remembrance of the September 11 attacks. It initially ran as a temporary installation from March 11 to April 14, 2002, and was launched again in 2003 to mark the second anniversary of the attack. It has been repeated every year on September 11. The tribute continued in 2008, but has not been funded for future years.

Courtyard of the Great Mosque

Isfahan, Iran

11th to 17th centuries

Dome of the Shah Mosque

Isfahan, Iran

1611-1638

Mihrab from the Madrasa Imami

Isfahan, Iran

ca. 1354glazed mosaic tilework11 ft. 3 in. x 7 ft. 6 in.