On our visit to the Detroit Institute of Arts last weekend, we spent most of our time in the Van Gogh in America exhibit. But after having lunch in the museum cafeteria, we walked through a few rooms of art from ancient times. I enjoyed seeing many birds and animals represented by the remarkable artists from thousands of years ago. These creatures often represented protective deities that took bird or animal form.
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| Walking Ibis, Egypt, 600-30 BCE. |
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| Falcon of the God Horus, Egypt, 7th Century BCE. |
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| Tile from Iran, 1600s. |
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| Vessel with Mountain Goat Spout, Turkey, 9th Century BCE. |
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| Cup with water birds, Iran, 17th Century BCE |
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| Sacrifices for the Dead, Egypt, 2450-2290 BCE |
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| Protective Deity, Assyrian Culture, 900-650 BCE |
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| Eagle-Headed Winged Guardian, Assyrian, 9th century BCE |
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| Detail of winged guardian. |
Photos © 2022 mae sander
14 comments:
Great works. Good you are allowed to take pics in there, too.
That Falcon is amazing and I found the goat head vessel intriguing.
Thanks for these--- A great post!
the ibis is fabulous. we were in a park today with lots of them strolling around. And the falcon is marvellous too. so talented these ancients :=)
Hi Mae--- Answer to question: Yes--- My Heart Goes Where The Wild Goose Goes from a '40s B "Western" that actually had a Canadian Mountie as the hero. Dunno why the song has stuck in my head for more than 70 years!
Knowing your love of birds, I can see why you were attracted to these exhibits. The Ibis is quite impressive. The water brds int he cup is wonderful. And of course, the Assyrian winged guardian is absolutely stunning.
Hello Mae :=)
How fascinating! I enjoyed seeing these ancient artifacts, and Know I have seen some of them, such as Harus, the Falcon God and the most important of avian deities in films. It's a wonder they all survived the passage of time. I was also intrigued by the Turkish vessel with the goat handle, But they are all very interesting,
All the best.
These are really affecting on a deep level. Yes the falcon. All of them really speak to us and even know we don't quite understand what they are saying. They touch us. Thank you for sharing. And I have to say, with everything going on, I appreciate seeing the BCE dating
Hello Mae,
What a fabulous exhibit. The Ibis is a favorite, along with the Mountain Goat vessel and the eagle headed guardian. The tile is lovely. They are all wonderful birds in art. Thank you for linking up and sharing your post.
Take care, have a great weekend. PS, thank you for leaving me a comment.
Interesting work! The vessel with mountain goat spout is impressive.
As you point out, Mae, birds have featured in human art from the very beginning, sometimes as totemic beings, but equally as demons and devils. Owls and ravens have especially been the subject of both viewpoints. I would have been delighted to spend time in this exhibit.
What a wonderful post! I love seeing this amazing art and the birds used in the art! Enjoy your weekend!
I hope these birds are still there by the time we get down to VanGogh!
Those are quite wonderful.
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