The Golden Graves of Ancient Vani at Getty Villa
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Achaemenid and Colchian. Polychrome Pectoral with Griffins and Birds (400-350 B.C.). Gold, glass, carnelian and turquoise. H. 31 cm (12 3/16 in.). Georgian National Museum, Tbilisi, Georgia. |
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| Colchian. Headdress Ornament with Openwork Decoration (350-300 B.C.). Gold. H. 6.6 cm (2.6 in.); W. 6.5 cm (2.6 in.). Georgian National Museum, Tbilisi, Georgia. |
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Colchian. Figurine No. 2 (3rd Century B.C.). Bronze and gold. H. 25 x L. (arms) 8.4 cm (9 13/16 x 3 5/16 in.). Georgian National Museum, Tbilisi, Georgia. |
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Colchian. Torso of a Youth (2nd Century B.C.). H. 105 x W. 45 x D. 25 cm (41 5/16 x 17 11/16 x 9 13/16 in.). Georgian National Museum, Tbilisi, Georgia. |
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Greek. Appliqué of Pan. (150-100 B.C.). Bronze. H. 13 x W. 9.8 x D. 6 cm (5 1/8 x 3 7/8 x 2 3/8 in.). Georgian National Museum, Tbilisi, Georgia. |
Review by STAN PARCHIN
September 29, 2009
According to the Greek epic poem
Argonautica (3rd Century B.C.) by Apollonius of Rhodes, the legendary Jason and his shipmates set sail from Greece to the kingdom of Colchis (the modern-day Republic of Georgia) in search of the fabled Golden Fleece. Their arduous journey took them across the Black Sea to a land also known for its precious metals.
Vani, a principal Colchian administrative and religious center, was the historic site of many graves that date from the 5th and 4th Centuries B.C. More than 140 examples of locally produced and imported works from five burials and other finds, including spectacular gold jewelry, ceramic and silver drinking vessels, coins, Greek bronze sculpture and glassware, are superbly exhibited in
The Golden Graves of Ancient Vani at the
Getty Villa (July 16-October 5, 2009). The artifacts illustrate the importance of the crossroads city as a conduit for the intermingling of Colchian, Greek, Achaemenid Persian and nomadic artistic traditions.
Funerary Customs and Jewelry of VaniWhile much of the jewelry excavated from 28 graves at Vani was intended for funerary purposes, some examples show signs of wear and restoration, indicating they were used during one's lifetime. Many of Vani's elite were also interred with their attendants and pets (dogs and horses). Commonly found in their burials were ceramic wine vessels, their contents the archaeological evidence of Colchis' role as an early European center of
viniculture.
The striking
Polychrome Pectoral with Griffins and Birds (400-350 B.C.) from Grave 6 belonged to a woman. Its elements of design, divided into
registers or rows characteristic of Mesopotamian art, are indicative of Vani's trade connections with ancient Mediterranean cultures. Two bands of images in an "Egyptianizing" style feature one with back-to-back griffins separated by a lotus plant and the other with a pair of birds shown in profile. Although the pendant was probably produced in the Persian Empire, Colchian taste can be seen in the eight locally manufactured gold chains attached to the piece from the widest part of its frame.
A magnificent gold
Headdress Ornament with Openwork Decoration (350-300 B.C.), unearthed from Grave 24, is arguably the burial's most interesting artifact because it incorporates a wide variety of artistic motifs. The work's central area displays a stag surrounded by three deer, an intricate design common in nomadic Scythian gold work. The ornament's upper edge is surmounted by protective lions that recall a principal feature of earlier Assyrian palace architecture. Three birds perched between them are a repetitive decorative component of pendants produced in Vani for necklaces.
The Human Form in Ancient Colchian SculptureThe evolution of anthropomorphic sculpture in ancient Colchis is aptly illustrated by two of the exhibition's key relics. Discovered in Vani's upper terrace, the bronze
Figurine No. 2 (3rd Century B.C.), one of seven, is a spindly representation of the human form, replete with gold earrings, a
torque (neck ring) and bracelets. The statuette's head is disproportionately larger than the work's other anatomical features. Objects such as this one were perhaps buried for ritualistic purposes when Vani functioned as a sanctuary city.
A remarkable fragmentary
Torso of a Youth (2nd Century B.C.), produced from a Colchian alloy using the "lost wax" technique, is a prime example of Early Classical Greek art's influence on that of Vani. The sculpture's well-defined physique and pose are reminiscent of the famous marble
Kritios Boy (ca. 490-460 B.C.) from Athens, now on permanent display in the New Acropolis Museum. Conspicuously missing from the composition are its areolae, nipples and pubic hair, possibly cast separately in copper and lost in antiquity.
Vani, Wine and ArtThe earliest known residues of wine come from the interiors of 8,000-year-old ceramic vessels found in present-day Georgia in 2003. Vani's archaeological record suggests that by Hellenistic times, the city's social and religious life was strongly linked to Dionysus, the Greek god of wine and revelry. Four bronze heads in high relief, each associated with the god, attest to Vani's association with the deity and the production of wine. On view in
The Golden Graves of Ancient Vani is an expressive open-mouthed
Appliqué of Pan (150-100 B.C.). This tour-de-force of Colchian bronze metalwork depicts a primary member of Dionysus' inner circle and bears testimony to the vitality of Colchian art and culture.
Previous to the Getty Villa, "The Golden Graves of Ancient Vani" (with variations in its title) appeared at the Arthur M. Sackler Gallery (December 1, 2007-February 24, 2009), the Institute for the Study of the Ancient World at New York University (March 12-June 1, 2008), the Fitzwilliam Museum (October 2, 2008-January 4, 2009) and the Benaki Museum (January 19-April 6, 2009).
Source
Kacharava, Darejan, Guram Kvirkvella, et al. Wine, Worship, and Sacrifice: The Golden Graves of Ancient Vani (exh. cat.). Princeton: Princeton University Press, 2008.