Alexander lived during the rich days when the
Classical Greek art had reached its apogee. We can only guess what beautiful
architecture and statues he may have grown up with and may have surrounded him.
In whatever I see, I always wonder if it is something that Alexander may have known
or if it was the product of his spreading of Hellenism.
Once in a while though, I find myself
confronted with striking objects or out of common statues and on such occasions
these questions surface once again. This is exactly what happened in the small
but very fine Archaeological Museum of
Morgantina,
Sicily
For now, let’s focus for a moment on a group that
is generally called The Ladies of
Morgantina. It is the strangest pair of women I’ve ever seen, in fact only
marble acroliths: two heads, three feet and three hands. The statues themselves
would have been made of wood, now gone, to which the extremities were attached.
The faces have that serene expression, typical for the classical period with
almond-shaped eyes and enigmatic smile, which led experts to date them to
around 530 BC. The heads and hands are perfectly well preserved while the feet
are strangely worn, perhaps because of repeated caresses by their worshippers.
The Ladies’ hair and their jewelry like diadems and earrings were probably made
of some precious metal and the statues themselves were wrapped in a mantel of
linen or wool, the head covered with a veil. They must have looked extremely true
to life.
Lots of speculations and debates have
surrounded these statues but in the end most scholars agree that both are
female and could represent Demeter and her daughter Persephone. The position of
their fingers suggests that they must have held an object in their hands.
The way they sit today in Morgantina’s Museum does them credit. A simple wire
construction hidden by dark tulle outlines the body of these goddesses while
the spotlights lay the accent justly on the acroliths, making them again very
respectable as they stare at their visitors from the height of their podium.
They have a very dignified posture and pose, accentuated by the correct light
and their timeless smile.
It is a great pleasure to see these goddesses right
here where they belong after having traveled around for many years. They were
smuggled out of the country after illegal digging in the second half of last
century and eventually found their way to the United States
[For more pictures click on this link to the Morgantina Museum]
[For more pictures click on this link to the Morgantina Museum]
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