A Persuasive Essay on Metropolitan Artworks

Introduction

The conventional way of studying history in academia is through the analysis of ancient documents that recorded the events of the past as well as issues that affected the people who lived through that point in history. These documents are favored because they contain concise information that details the different time periods, geographical locations and also the characters who took part in those events. Another less common approach to the study of history is through the study of ancient art works that have either been preserved by the people or passed down the generations or at times dug out of the ruins in an archeological site.

The combination of ancient art works and the corresponding historical accounts of events provides an even clearer picture of what happened in ancient times. Two millennia ago the Roman empire was a world power and as a result the exploits of its ruling class as well as ordinary citizens were widely recorded by historians. The benefit of this is that it makes the analysis of artworks from that period an interesting and enlightening affair. Without this, analysts and critics of ancient Roman art would be forced to make uninformed guesses about the theme carried by the different pieces of art they are analyzing.

In this exercise, two paintings from the Roman period will be analyzed on the basis of the commonality that exists between them as well as the concepts that they share. These two artworks are both mummy portraits depicting different characters. The first one depicts a young boy called Eutyches¹ while the second one shows a thin faced man² and this description also happens to be the name of the painting.

Basic information of the two artworks

The first painting called “The Portrait of the Boy Eutyches” as stated above is from the Roman period and is dated at between 100 and 150 AD¹. The medium that was used to display it is encaustic on wood while the country of origin is Egypt. The dimensions of the painting are 19 by 38 cm for width and height respectively. Its Accession number is 18.9.2². The image displayed here is that of a young boy who is looking intently toward the viewer. This painting depicts the image of the teenage boy who was recently deceased and mummified. This piece of art was meant to cover the face of the mummy in an attempt to immortalize his image in accordance with Egyptian burial customs.

The second painting is titled “The portrait of the thin faced, bearded man” and it is dated at AD 160 – 180⁴. Like the above painting, this one originated from Egypt but from a slightly different period in time. Its dimensions are 21.6 by 38.1 cm for the width and height and the material used is encaustic lime wood. Its accession number is 09.181.1 and it is displayed in gallery number 138.

.Analysis of the two artworks

The central theme that brings these two artworks together besides their location of origin is the fact that they bring out the Metropolitan Nature of Egypt during the Roman Period. The main similarity between these two pieces as stated above is their point of origin and the style in which they are presented. The fact that they come from slightly different time periods is importance because it signifies the continuity of their common theme which is the metropolitan nature of Alexandria in Egypt during the Roman Period. The main reason why the theme of ‘Metropolitan’ has been chosen is due to the presence of elements of three distinct cultures in each of these paintings.

When it comes to the functional use of these paintings, historical records, the way the paintings were made as well as the location where they were found point to their use as funeral paraphernalia used by the inhabitants of the Fayum region in Egypt. During this time period, parts of Egypt came under Greco-Roman rule. Several Greek settlements cropped up in Egypt, the most famous being the city of Alexandria which was named after Alexander the great. The coming together of Romans and Greeks in Egypt led to the development of a sub-culture that exhibited bits and pieces of the contributory cultures. The majority of the population was Egyptian and this meant that the resultant culture would still maintain a large portion of the Egyptians’ way of life.

It is acknowledged that both were used to display the countenance of a person who was about to be buried and this was part and parcel of ancient Egyptian customs. During the Roman period, many of the inhabitants of Fayum were Egyptians who had adopted Greek ways of life. This can be seen in several elements of the images depicted in the paintings. The images first of all closely resemble the depictions of ancient Greeks and Romans. When it comes to the inscriptions, they appear to be Greek writings by all accounts. This serves to show the heavy influence of Greek customs on the way of life for the inhabitants of this region. Traditional Egyptian burial customs only had hieroglyphs which were inscribed inside the walls of pyramids and these clearly indicate the acceptance of Greek customs and ways of life.

The intermarriage of the communities during this period of Egypt’s history seems to have gone well beyond the literal marital context. Ways of dressing which is an integral part of the culture. The paintings that are supposedly depicting Egyptians show the boy and the man dressed in tunics or togas which were originally used by the ancient Greeks and Romans. The fact that it was used for burial suggests that the Greek burial ceremonies were not being practiced. This is in light of the fact that ancient Greeks believed in the cremation of their dead as the final sendoff ritual for deceased members of society. This was however probably practiced when the first Greek inhabitants came to Alexandria decades before.

With regard to the naming of individuals, the Boy’s name “Eutyches, freedman of Kasanios” is clearly Greek. The inscription written in Greek further states that the boy is the son of “Herakleides Evandros” who also has a Greek name. This indicates the fact that by this time there had been several generations Egyptians who had adopted the Hellenic naming system. Since names are often related to the language of a people, it is highly likely that the people who lived at the time when this painting was made spoke Greek as their primary language. Since the portrait of the man too was used to cover and identify mummified bodies, there is a strong possibility that he too had a Greek name³.

The dimensions of these paintings as well as the materials used and the overall workmanship are suggestive of the fact that these paintings were prepared by professionals who used a variety of techniques to create the pieces being discussed. The Fact that they were both made on wood panels of a similar shape but over differing time periods points out to the likelihood of the existence of a group of artists who did this job as experts, training apprentices to carry on with the work for future generations. This is indicative of the fact that the population generally found solace in the Egyptian perspective of the afterlife which involved the surviving next of kin dedicating a lot of energy and resources to ensure the person who has passed on has a smooth sendoff. This is why families went to great lengths to ensure that though deceased, paintings of their loved ones came out looking realistically life like as if to suggest that the person’s life was merely continuing rather than ending⁵.

From the above analysis, it can be stated that pieces of art from the different time periods can be looked at through the lens of an analyst of historical events. This approach exposes much more than whatever has been displayed in plain sight. On the surface the paintings depict a teenage boy and a middle aged man whose portraits have been neatly drawn⁴. Deeper analysis however brings about the image of a society that has been shaped through the hands of three distinct cultures which have culminated to burial rituals that have features of what the Romans, Greeks and Egyptians believed about the afterlife⁵.

References

Metropolitan Museum (2013) Portrait of the Boy Eutyches, Retrieved from http://www.metmuseum.org/Collections/search-the-collections/547951 on November 25, 2013
Metropolitan Museum (2013) Portrait of a thin-faced, bearded man, Retrieved from http://www.metmuseum.org/collections/search-the-collections/547856 on November 25, 2013
Art, A. N. E. (2009). The Metropolitan Museum of Art. Cell, 212, 535-7710.
Borg, B. E. (2010). Painted Funerary Portraits. UCLA Encyclopedia of Egyptology, 1(1).
Dieleman, I. (2011). A guide to to Greco-Roman Hawara in the Fayum and its death industry. Journal of roman archaeology, 24(2), 810-814.

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