There is a surprise behind this Lycian Temple which will be revealed in the last shot of this film.
The Nereid Monument is a sculptured tomb from Xanthos in Lycia, then part of the Achaemenid Persian Empire built in 390 B.C.
Bearing a "Greek appearance", it was built according to Zoroastrian criteria:
Composed of thick stone, raised on plinths off the ground, and having single windowless chambers.
The monument is now named after the life-size female figures in wind-blown drapery that have generally been called Nereids.
They are thought to be sea-nymphs because various sculpted sea creatures were found under the feet of seven of them.
They do make one feel like going for a swim.
The sculptor has mastered the Phidian or severe style of the classical Greek period, such as seen here in the goddesses from a pediment of The Parthenon.
The surrounding panels represent heroic battle scenes, with no apparent overall narrative, mostly involving male soldiers dressed in Greek costume and armor.
The forerunner of Minoan art, from Crete, from about 2600 to 1100 BC was Cycladic art, which is in short supply in this museum.
This was followed by Mycenean art, 1600 BC to about 1100 BC, home to Agamemnon on north-eastern Peloponnese.
The Ancient Greek Dark ages followed, where little to no art was made, which brings us to 900 BC.
Here we begin what is called the geometric period.
Its earmarks are geometric patterns on pottery and depictions of humans and animals composed primarily from triangular shapes.
Here is a perfect example of geometric period pottery.
The Archaic period lasted from the eighth century BC to the second Persian invasion of Greece in 480 BC.
The Archaic period lasted from the eighth century BC to the second Persian invasion of Greece in 480 BC.
Black-figure is the most commonly imagined when one thinks about Greek pottery. It was a popular style from the middle to late Archaic, from c. 620 to 480 BC.
In Black-figure the subject was painted on the vase with a clay slip, or varnish which turned black and glossy after firing.
The Strangford Apollo, really a kouros, a Parian marble statue of a boy from the late archaic period, 500-490 BC.
Greek funerary markers, or stele, had a long history in Athens. It often includes a relief of the deceased shaking hands goodbye to friends and family members.
Red figure is the reverse of the black figure technique and is characterized by drawn red figures and a painted black background.
The Tomb of Payava is a Lycian free-standing barrel-vaulted stone sarcophagus from 360 BC.
The Classical Period was from the second Persian conquest in 479 BC to death of Alexander the Great in 323 BC.
These terra cotta figurines were purchased by the middle class as bric a brac.
These charming figurines were sculpted after famous theater characters.
Here we enter The Hellenistic period of Greek art.
Greek Classical and Hellenistic art is spread throughout the museum.
We are now on the third floor of the museum.
Upon inquiring whether there was any rhyme or reason to where Greek artworks were placed, a docent replied; “No.”
The Portland Vase, from the first century CE, is one of the finest glass vessels that have survived from Roman times.
The Warren Cup was named after one of Britain’s leading poofters.
An ancient version of doing “The Crocodile Rock.”
The British Museum’s “Library,” includes fine Roman copies of Greek statues.
And as promised, behind The Nereid Monument, stands Caryatid #3 from The Erechtheion on The Acropolis.
