Bust of Cleopatra

Source: Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia.
Statue fragment of Cleopatra VII
Dimensions63.5 cm × 33.3 cm (25.0 in × 13.1 in)
LocationRoyal Ontario Museum, Toronto

The Bust of

Cleopatra VII is a granite bust currently on display in the Gallery of Ancient Egypt at the Royal Ontario Museum (ROM). It is believed to have been discovered in Alexandria, Egypt at the site of Cleopatra's sunken palace on the island of Antirhodos. The bust was purchased by the ROM's founder Charles Trick Currelly while on expedition in Egypt in the early 20th Century.[1]

The Bust of Cleopatra VII can be found on Level 3 of the ROM in the Galleries of Africa: Egypt along with almost 2000 other Egyptian artifacts on display.[2]

Identification history

1960s

Egyptologist: Bernard Von Bothmer of the Brooklyn Museum, was the first expert to attempt to identify the piece and published his findings in an exhibition catalogue from 1960. On the subject of identification of such statues, Von Bothmer said "each sculpture has to be judged by style, rather than by attributes and accoutrements."[3]

  • Neckline: Von Bothmer noted that "with exceptions, the thin garment indicated by the neckline is more common in early than in late Ptolemaic Sculpture."[4]
  • Facial Features: When examining the features of the sculpted face, Von Bothmer was of the opinion "the expression is dry, bland, and non-committal." He felt as though "there is a mystery in the face, and the puzzling element is probably
    Ptolemaic Period."[5]

With no other previous scholarly literature available on the sculpture at the time, Von Bothmer concluded that: "If the date suggested (about 240-200 BC) is correct, we may have in this queen either

Arsinoe III."[6]

The statue's round facial and neckline features

1980s

Robert S. Bianchi, also of the Brooklyn Museum, suggested the bust was either of a Queen or Goddess because "the appearance of the uraeus on the hair band is an attribute common to both."[7] Bianchi thought a more precise identification would have been possible "had the annulets on the crown of the head been preserved."[8]

  • Neckline: Bianchi decided to focus on other sculpted features of the bust "for the chronological criteria."
    Musées royaux d'art et d'histoire in Brussels, Belgium (English: Royal Museums of Art and History) and the Yale University Art Gallery in New Haven, Connecticut. The statues Bianchi used to compare with the ROM's piece were both dated between 200-100 BC.[11]

With this research, evidence began to suggest that the statue belonging to the ROM had different characteristics when compared with other Ptolemaic statues from the 240-200 BC period. Bianchi's research challenged the first commonly accepted identification of the statue by dating the fragment to between 200 and 100 BC, and by giving merit to the possibility that the statue in fact depicts a goddess.

2000s - present

Notice the large back pillar protruding from the back of the sculpture and base of the crown on the top of the head

Sally-Ann Ashton of

The Fitzwilliam Museum focuses on "the unusual extended back pillar with crown and the rounded portrait features, which on closer examination echo but do not exactly match those of early Ptolemaic period"[13]
in dating the statue.

The Roman copying of Ptolemaic sculpting traditions may be due in-part to a policy introduced by
Cleopatra VII. As Ashton writes "research undertaken for the British Museum's Cleopatra of Egypt exhibition, scholars had discovered Cleopatra VII had a policy of associating herself with Arsinoe II." This policy "included copying the sculptures of Arsinoe's day (early Ptolemaic period) who remained a popular goddess into the Roman period."[15]
In reference to the past attempts at identification based on facial features Ashton remarked, "it is not surprising then that some earlier-style features found their way into the Roman-Egyptian repertoire of Cleopatra's time, which also explains why scholars have struggled to place the ROM's piece."[16]
  • Back Pillar and Crown: Ashton made a connection between the statue at the ROM and an almost identical piece from the Petrie Museum of Egyptian Archaeology, University College, London, "which shares the unusual pillar and crown, is also linked to the 1st century BC and to Cleopatra herself."[17]
The back pillar usually "extended beyond the statue's head only in colossal statue's to support the headdress." The ROM and the Petrie sculptures were "smaller than life-size"
Cleopatra VII sometime between 46-47 BC.[19]
The crown of the statue (now broken) provided another link to identifying the statue. "In form, the ROM and the Petrie sculptures are the same; both have the crown carved from the same block of stone as the statue's."
Ptolemy XIII.[21]
This would date the statue from 51 to 47 BC.

Currently, the artifact label for the

Cleopatra VII
reads as follows:

Statue Fragment of Cleopatra VII
69 - 30 BC
Although this statue is not inscribed, analysis supports identification as the renowned Cleopatra, early in her reign. The portrait is done in a traditional, idealized Egyptian style which does not reflect a realistic appearance.

Cultural analysis

Ancient Egyptian

Roberta Shaw, Assistant Curator of World Cultures at the

Cleopatra VII
.

In contrast, the

Cherchel, Algeria again shows Cleopatra wearing the royal diadem, symbol of Greek kingship, but with a different hairstyle than the Berlin and Vatican busts.[26] Another Parian-marble Roman bust of Cleopatra exists in the Capitoline Museums of Rome, but it features her wearing an Egyptian-style vulture headdress instead of a diadem.[27]

Modern day

The modern day significance of the statue can be found in its rarity and its academic properties. In regards to rarity, Roberta Shaw states that "the ROM's statue of Cleopatra VII forms part of a pair," and is believed that "the sister statue resides in Alexandria."[28] This pair is one of a kind, as no other unique pair of related statues of this iconic ancient queen during the period 69 - 30 BC have been discovered (although other sculptures of her exist). For this reason, the ROM's statue gives all the opportunity to examine Ptolemaic/Roman egyptianizing style of sculpture, establish a timeline to other period sculpture, and as Ashton states it "likely shows us the earliest representations of Cleopatra in two roles: queen and goddess of Egypt."[29]

See also

References

  1. ^ Shaw, Roberta. "Hidden Treasures Iconic: Cleopatra". ROM/Discovery Channel. Retrieved 30 December 2012.
  2. ^ "Galleries of Africa: Egypt". Retrieved 30 December 2012.
  3. ^ Von Bothmer, Bernard; De Meulenaere, Herman; Muller, Hans (16 October 1960). "Egyptian sculpture of the late period, 700 B.C. to A.D. 100". The Brooklyn Museum. pp. 134–135. Retrieved 7 May 2013.
  4. ^ Von Bothmer, Bernard; De Meulenaere, Herman; Muller, Hans (16 October 1960). "Egyptian sculpture of the late period, 700 B.C. to A.D. 100". The Brooklyn Museum. pp. 134–135. Retrieved 7 May 2013.
  5. ^ Von Bothmer, Bernard; De Meulenaere, Herman; Muller, Hans (16 October 1960). "Egyptian sculpture of the late period, 700 B.C. to A.D. 100". The Brooklyn Museum. pp. 134–135. Retrieved 7 May 2013.
  6. ^ Von Bothmer, Bernard; De Meulenaere, Herman; Muller, Hans (16 October 1960). "Egyptian sculpture of the late period, 700 B.C. to A.D. 100". The Brooklyn Museum. pp. 134–135. Retrieved 7 May 2013.
  7. ^ Bianchi, Robert (1988). Cleopatra's Egypt "Age of the Ptolemies". New York: The Brooklyn Museum. p. 181.
  8. ^ Bianchi, Robert (1988). Cleopatra's Egypt "Age of the Ptolemies". New York: The Brooklyn Museum. p. 181.
  9. ^ Bianchi, Robert (1988). Cleopatra's Egypt "Age of the Ptolemies". New York: The Brooklyn Museum. p. 181.
  10. ^ Bianchi, Robert (1988). Cleopatra's Egypt "Age of the Ptolemies". New York: The Brooklyn Museum. p. 181.
  11. ^ Bianchi, Robert (1988). Cleopatra's Egypt "Age of the Ptolemies". New York: The Brooklyn Museum. p. 181.
  12. ^ Bianchi, Robert (1988). Cleopatra's Egypt "Age of the Ptolemies". New York: The Brooklyn Museum. p. 181.
  13. ^ Ashton, Sally-Ann (Spring 2002). "Identifying the ROM's "Cleopatra"". Routunda. Toronto: 36.
  14. ^ Ashton, Sally-Ann (Spring 2002). "Identifying the ROM's "Cleopatra"". Routunda. Toronto: 36.
  15. ^ Ashton, Sally-Ann (Spring 2002). "Identifying the ROM's "Cleopatra"". Routunda. Toronto: 36.
  16. ^ Ashton, Sally-Ann (Spring 2002). "Identifying the ROM's "Cleopatra"". Routunda. Toronto: 36–37.
  17. ^ Ashton, Sally-Ann (Spring 2002). "Identifying the ROM's "Cleopatra"". Routunda. Toronto: 39.
  18. ^ Ashton, Sally-Ann (Spring 2002). "Identifying the ROM's "Cleopatra"". Routunda. Toronto: 37.
  19. ^ Ashton, Sally-Ann (Spring 2002). "Identifying the ROM's "Cleopatra"". Routunda. Toronto: 37–39.
  20. ^ Ashton, Sally-Ann (Spring 2002). "Identifying the ROM's "Cleopatra"". Routunda. Toronto: 39.
  21. ^ Ashton, Sally-Ann (Spring 2002). "Identifying the ROM's "Cleopatra"". Routunda. Toronto: 39.
  22. ^ Shaw, Roberta. "Hidden Treasures Iconic: Cleopatra". ROM/Discovery Channel. Retrieved 30 December 2012.
  23. ISBN 978-0-19-536553-5
    .
  24. ISBN 9780674019058
    .
  25. ISBN 9780060585587
    .
  26. ISBN 9780674019058
    .
  27. ISBN 9780060585587
    .
  28. ^ Shaw, Roberta. "Hidden Treasures Iconic: Cleopatra". ROM/Discovery Channel. Retrieved 30 December 2012.
  29. ^ Ashton, Sally-Ann (Spring 2002). "Identifying the ROM's "Cleopatra"". Routunda. Toronto: 39.
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