27 May, 2014
We've been readjusting to NOT being in Rome, and hope you all are well. I do have our frequent flier tickets for our 2015 return!
Please continue reading if you've ever been curious about
"the Minotaur, the Griffins,
the Chimeras,
the Gorgons, Pegasus,
the Sphinx, the Harpies,
the Chimeras,
the Gorgons, Pegasus,
the Sphinx, the Harpies,
the Sirens, the Satyrs,
the Centaurs,
the Hydra of Lerna,
Scylla and other
the Centaurs,
the Hydra of Lerna,
Scylla and other
sea monsters,
from the Orient to Greece,
from the Orient to Greece,
as well as to the
Etruscan, Italic and Roman world."
There is a fine exhibit at the National Museum of Roma, Palazzo Massimo, which we saw two months ago. It unfortunately ends on June 1, 2014.
There is a fine exhibit at the National Museum of Roma, Palazzo Massimo, which we saw two months ago. It unfortunately ends on June 1, 2014.
(upper left, terracotta statuette
of a Centaur, from 750-600 B.C.
Now in the Archeological
 |
| These two are "borrowed" images. The Minotaur was a very nasty fellow, half bull, half human, kept locked away in the original labyrinth below the palace of the Cretan King Minos. The Theseus legend of ending the Minotaur's unsavory habit of devouring human sacrifices is another long fable! |
 |
This URL will take you to the (alas, only one page) of their website:
http://archeoroma.beniculturali.it/en/exhibition/mostri-creature-
fantastiche-paura-mito-monsters-fantastic-creatures-fear-and-myth
fantastiche-paura-mito-monsters-fantastic-creatures-fear-and-myth
I discovered a small treat; on the Italian version of the exhibition's webpage is a link to a YouTube short video, done without words, so the language doesn't matter. It is nifty, and gives a quick taste of the exhibit, a few seconds of the museum itself, and a hint of their clever use of neon lights and projected words to grab the interest of passersby.
Since the museum is directly next to Rome's main train station (and local transportation hub), this has helped raise awareness of this very fine museum. The below link takes you to an official, 5 minute video.
Emil and I had noticed the banners outside the museum, and thought the exhibit might be of interest. Little did we realize how much fun it would be, and how many fascinating pieces would be on display.
Once inside the exhibit, I realized that non-flash photography was allowed, (this is not normally the case in special exhibitions). I smiled at my dear Emil and said as nicely as I could, "this will take a while. I'll meet you in the upstairs galleries later". He waited patiently while I snapped away. I spent an hour there and could have enjoyed an even longer visit.
Left is a view from 2012 of 2/3rds of the internal courtyard of the Palazzo Massimo Museum. The exhibit snaked around several small rooms and narrow corridors on the ground floor, adding to the feeling of being in a labyrinth or a scary cave.
Below are some of the photos that turned out, given the exhibit's intention to reproduce the feel of a hidden labyrinth with cramped space and very low but very dramatic light levels. These follow the exhibit's theme of having different types of monsters and creatures grouped together.
Here are two terracottas of Harpies.
They had strong wings, sometimes depicted as being made of bronze, very powerful talons, and were known for their insatiable appetites, swiftness, and their horrific smells. They were often depicted as having the body of a bird (with varying degrees of female attributes), and the ancient poet Hesiod remarked on their lovely hair, as does the above Etruscan representation.
Right, a corner relief of a sphinx, from a road outside of Rome. Found in 1997, from the 2nd C. A.D. Now is the storage areas of this museum, Inv. 394441.
...........
Satyrs were very popular! Here's two that decorated the edges of roof eaves. The grapes and vine leaves in the first one's hair were signs of his participation in religious rituals for the wine god Dionysius (or Bacchus).
The above Satyr and Maenad are from around the early 5th C. B.C., in an Etruscan town called Satricum. Nowadays, they don't have much opportunity for continuing their Dionysian procession of dancing and drinking in their present home of the Etruscan Museum in Rome's Villa Giulia. (Inv. 10259)
Above right is another Satyr, with his traditional goat-legs and his head featuring their usual pointy ears and stumps of goat horns.
A Nereid and Sea Monster, from the 1st C. B.C. (Nereids were the daughters of an old sea god, Nereus. They lived in the bottom of the sea, and could transform themselves into other creatures.)
This amphora for wine (dated 560-540 B.C.) is from an Etruscan tomb outside of Tarquinia, slightly north of Rome, and is now in the museum there. If I remember correctly, it is less than two feet high.
(Museo Archeologico Nazionale Tarquiniese, inv. 1748)
two further sources: for a nice review in English, see
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2014/01/09/monsters-fantastic-creatures-of-fear-and-myth_n_4557377.html
go to https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pJXVXUWsp4c
for a thirteen minute YouTube video, done with a hand held camera, but it covers the exhibition nicely with far many more images of items that I either did not photograph or could not manage a good shot of, including the "poster boy" of the entire exhibit!
Since the museum is directly next to Rome's main train station (and local transportation hub), this has helped raise awareness of this very fine museum. The below link takes you to an official, 5 minute video.
Emil and I had noticed the banners outside the museum, and thought the exhibit might be of interest. Little did we realize how much fun it would be, and how many fascinating pieces would be on display.
Once inside the exhibit, I realized that non-flash photography was allowed, (this is not normally the case in special exhibitions). I smiled at my dear Emil and said as nicely as I could, "this will take a while. I'll meet you in the upstairs galleries later". He waited patiently while I snapped away. I spent an hour there and could have enjoyed an even longer visit.
Below are some of the photos that turned out, given the exhibit's intention to reproduce the feel of a hidden labyrinth with cramped space and very low but very dramatic light levels. These follow the exhibit's theme of having different types of monsters and creatures grouped together.
Harpies, Sirens, and Sphinxes
 | ||
| Askos (a vessel to hold perfumes or unguents) in the form of a Siren, from Crotone, made in "greater Greece" - Southern Italy) around 470-460 BC.
  |
Here are two terracottas of Harpies.
The above Harpy looks harmless, but they had
a nasty reputation, being messengers of the
god of the Underworld, Hades.
Their job was to snatch up souls
(hopefully only of the dead) and
bring those souls to the Underworld,
which is why they were often used for decorating graves.
Sphinxes
 |
| Sphinx statue-support. from the 1st C. AD, copied from a mid 5th C. B.C. Greek original. It is now in a museum in Basel. |
Right, a corner relief of a sphinx, from a road outside of Rome. Found in 1997, from the 2nd C. A.D. Now is the storage areas of this museum, Inv. 394441.
One tends to think of the Egyptians in connection with Sphinxes, especially the "Great Sphinx" of Giza, from about 2,500 B.C., they were also part of Greek myth and art from about 1,600 B.C.
Sphinx statue of
Pharaoh Amasis.
Found in 1883 in Rome, under the via di Sant' Ignazio, where once was a very large temple complex to Isis and other Egyptian gods.
Now in the Capitoline Museum, inv. 35.
From the XXVI
dynasty, about
570-526 BC.
...........
A Few OTHER Pieces
 |
Protomes from cauldrons, 7th to 6th C BC. Most of these are in the Archeological Museum in Olympia, Greece.
Yes, alas, those are my hands reflected in the glass.
|
This web picture from the below URL may give you an idea of what the protomes were for. This cauldron probably was for special occasions and not ordinary stews or potions.
http://www.uark.edu/campus-resources/dlevine/ReligionImages.html |
Satyrs
Satyrs were very popular! Here's two that decorated the edges of roof eaves. The grapes and vine leaves in the first one's hair were signs of his participation in religious rituals for the wine god Dionysius (or Bacchus).
These rites were thought to give a foretaste of the afterlife.
Both of these Etruscan roof ornaments are from the
5th C. B.C.
Both of these Etruscan roof ornaments are from the
5th C. B.C.
Satyrs were jolly fellows, who could make modern fraternity party boys seem mild in comparison. Their usual haunts were woods and wild areas.
Satyrs were known for both being very strong physically and for their insatiable lusts for food, wine and sex.
These imaginary creatures were often shown naked and with their male member "at full alert" while running after their latest love, be it human, nymph, or goat!
Other ancient vases show scenes of actors dressed up as Satyrs and comically pursuing their usual habits.
Here's some graceful dancing Satyrs with Dionysias (or Bacchus), the God of Wine. This wine jug or amphora from 540 to 530 B.C. once prized by the Medicis, is now in the Florence Archeological Museum, Inv. 3800.
Earlier, Satyrs were usually depicted as ugly brutes, but in some of their later representations they are very handsome. The Satyrs were known for their love of pranks and impish tricks, and were considered cowardly, but they were capable of making wonderful music (often with flutes). They also occasionally were wiser than humans.
The above Satyr and Maenad are from around the early 5th C. B.C., in an Etruscan town called Satricum. Nowadays, they don't have much opportunity for continuing their Dionysian procession of dancing and drinking in their present home of the Etruscan Museum in Rome's Villa Giulia. (Inv. 10259)
(Maenads were actual human females, who participated in the biennial rituals to Dionysius out in the countryside. How "wild" were their rituals? It was all a secret . . .)
Above right is another Satyr, with his traditional goat-legs and his head featuring their usual pointy ears and stumps of goat horns.
Some (Sea) Monsters and Creatures
 |
This was a roof eave corner decoration, from a villa just outside of Rome. The face is of a river god, Acheloo, a reasonable deity to honor when a property is very close to the river.It is mold-made terracotta, from the turn of the 3rd C. B.C.
This piece is now is a museum created for the artifacts found in 1995 when a large Auditorium complex was being built.
http://www.auditorium.com/it/auditorium/spazi-sale/museo-archeologico (On this site, there are supposed to be webpages in other languages, but they were unresponsive today. Most of the website is about the popular music programs there in the large Auditorium.)
I think I probably heard of this museum, but somehow I had forgotten about it. This is another of the many reasons we continue to return to Rome, for there's always more to see!
|
A Nereid and Sea Monster, from the 1st C. B.C. (Nereids were the daughters of an old sea god, Nereus. They lived in the bottom of the sea, and could transform themselves into other creatures.) |
Funerary Urn with Scylla, early II century BC. Now in the National Archeological Museum of Florence, found near Castiglione del Lago in Umbria. This monster lived in a sea-side cave, darting out to snatch dolphins, sharks or passing sailors. She is often shown with twelve feet and six heads, however, this less monstrous looking one was still deadly. |
This fellow looks LIKE a Satyr, but according to the signs, he instead is the monster
He's from the 6th C. B.C., and now graces the storage areas of this museum. I hope he will now be on display regularly.
Typhon,
an adversary of Zeus. He had been on the peak or the corner of a roof line (presumably of a temple or shrine) in a town near Rome. He's from the 6th C. B.C., and now graces the storage areas of this museum. I hope he will now be on display regularly.
 |
Man and a Centaur statuette, from Greece, mid 7th C. B.C. Given by J. Pierpont Morgan to the Met Museum, New York. Inv. 17.190.2072 (The Centaurs were half horse, half man. Their representation changed throughout the centuries, sometimes as a man figure almost glued onto the back of a horse, as above, other times shown in a better blending, but sometimes in rather improbable physical combinations. They shared many of the shortcomings of the Satyrs, especially a susceptibility to wine. However, a few of the Centaurs were exceptionally wise and skilled, such as Chiron, who was entrusted with the upbringing and education of the young hero Achilles.) |
Mosaic with a Ketos (a sea serpent). From the ruins of the ancient Greek city Caulonia, near the tip of the "boot" of the Italian peninsula.This 3rd C. B.C. mosaic in now in the museum of the nearby town of Monasterace.
Gorgons/Medusa
 Above, Kotyle (cup) with one of the three Gorgons. Ceramic cup in Etruscan-Corinzia style, early 6th C. B.C. It was found in 1966 in a necropolis near Pontecagnano, and now in that town's museum. (The town is near Salerno, which is between Rome and Naples.) Below, horse breast collar, with Gorgon. From Ruvo di Puglia, near Bari in Southern Italy. Bronze laminate with ivory and bone inserts. From the end of the 6th C. B.C. Now in the Naples Archeological Museum, Inv. 5715.  
Medusa is the better known of the Gorgon sisters, and was the only one who was mortal. Looking at any one of these sisters would turn the beholder into stone. Perseus was sent on what was supposed to be a suicide mission by a King who wanted to seduce his mother, but Athena and Mercury helped him accomplish this impossible task.
But that is another fable . . .
(Above,
Gorgon's head, 2nd C. B.C., from the Temple
of Venus and Rome at the Roman Forum.
Now in the Vatican Museums,
inv. Vat. 2281.)
as is this other part of the Perseus myth.
Here he saves Andromeda from being sacrificed to appease a horrid dragon that was the terror of a city. This painting by the Cavalier d'Arpino, around 1602, shows the flying horse Pegasus (born from the severed head of Medusa)
bringing Perseus to the rescue of a damsel who was indeed in distress.
Hercules and the Hydra |
 |
Hercules (left) is fighting the poisonous Hydra, without much success. This lethal monster was defeated when he finally realized that he and his nephew Iolaus needed to cauterize each freshly cut stump to prevent two heads from sprouting forth. |
This amphora for wine (dated 560-540 B.C.) is from an Etruscan tomb outside of Tarquinia, slightly north of Rome, and is now in the museum there. If I remember correctly, it is less than two feet high.
(Museo Archeologico Nazionale Tarquiniese, inv. 1748)
LAST ONE!
 |
Statuette of a Leontocephalus. (Lion headed creature) From Southern Italy, a terracotta figurine with gold and silver inserts, from the 6th or 5th C. B.C. Now in the Archeological Museum of Cagliari, Inv. 186201. |
Believe it or not, you have not seen ALL the photos I managed
to snare in a fairly frantic hour of snap shooting! I hope you
found these to be fun, and I've had a fine afternoon, pouring
through references, especially The Oxford Classical Dictionary,
learning more about these pieces and their legends.
two further sources: for a nice review in English, see
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2014/01/09/monsters-fantastic-creatures-of-fear-and-myth_n_4557377.html
go to https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pJXVXUWsp4c
for a thirteen minute YouTube video, done with a hand held camera, but it covers the exhibition nicely with far many more images of items that I either did not photograph or could not manage a good shot of, including the "poster boy" of the entire exhibit!
THE END OF THIS POSTING! Ciao, Carol
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