Ancient Art / Comparing Two Works
Two ancient works of art were viewed for discussion in this paper. The first is called "Vessel Terminating in the Forepart of a Stag" at the Metropolitan Museum of Art. The second is an Etruscan engraved mirror, which can be viewed at the Louvre. Although the objects are from different time periods and cultures and depict different images, they have in common the fact that they are both utilitarian objects made beautiful with adornment.
The stag vessel [http://www.metmuseum.org / Collections/search-the-collections/30006086] was discovered in Central Anatolia (a region of Turkey) and is attributed to the Hittite Empire, circa the 14th -- 13th centuries BCE. It is a drinking vessel made of silver with gold inlay. It is a representational piece that stands eighteen centimeters tall. According to the Museum's website, the stag's front legs and torso, which opens into a cup, was hammered from a single piece of metal. It was joined to the head with a checkerboard-patterned ring and the horns and handle were attached separately. The rim of the cup is decorated with a religious frieze, suggesting that the...
It is certainly too elaborate for daily use by an average citizen. Hittite texts tell us that animal-shaped vessels made of gold, silver, stone and wood, in various animal forms, were given to the gods for their own use ("Vessel," n.d.). It is possible the vessel was intended to be the personal property of the stag god and was thus touched minimally by human hands. This theory would partially explain the vessel's excellent condition. Details on the face, neckband, muscles of the torso, and the frieze are clearly seen. They were rendered to be as realistic as possible.
The traditional role of the artist is exemplified in this piece because a utilitarian object was made into something more. While the stag vessel could function as a drinking cup, the precious materials and exquisite craftsmanship tell us the piece was a decorative object, probably created for religious reasons.
The Etruscan engraved mirror [http://www.louvre.fr/en/oeuvre-notices/mirror-0]
depicts the goddess Turan (the Etruscan Aphrodite) riding a swan. It is made of cast bronze and features…
