“Unearthing the Truth: Egypt’s Pagan and Coptic Sculpture” at the Brooklyn Museum of Art

By: Dorothy Gale

 

 

Frieze of Animals in Plant Scrolls, Egypt, 4th century.  Brooklyn Museum of Art, Charles Edwin Wilbour Find, 41.1266.

There was a time when the Emperor Constantine could order crosses painted on the shields of his army and then erect a statue of himself in the guise of Apollo. There was a time when Christian evangelists criticized their converts for wearing images of pagan gods woven into the fabric of their clothes. The Mediterranean area from about 300 to 900 AD was bound together by long and active trade routes, and its people knew and embraced many gods – the more the better. They also embraced many artistic styles, both the naturalistic style of Rome and the more schematic style popular in Western Asia. It was a culture that not only tolerated variety, but reveled in it. 

The material culture of this era has been largely lost or overbuilt. Only in Egypt did the climate and the burial customs combine to preserve wood, stone, textiles, papyrus, metal, and ivory. In spite of the large number of surviving objects from Egypt, this period has not been a popular research subject with art historians. This is partly because they have never been quite sure what to call it, since it falls between “Classical Civilization” and “the Middle Ages,” two ideas with a powerful hold on the art-historical imagination. 300 to 900 AD used to be considered the precursor to the Middle Ages, and was called the Early Christian period. (Native Egyptian Christians are called Copts, which is why Egyptian material from this era is also known as Coptic art.)  But these days the pagan imagery on so much of the work has led scholars to connect it more closely with Roman art, and the period is now commonly referred to as Late Antique. Call it what you like, art from this era rarely has its own gallery in an art museum, and this makes any special exhibition of Late Antique art like “Unearthing the Truth” an important event.

It is unfortunate, therefore, that the Brooklyn Museum of Art did not take advantage of the gallery space at their disposal to engage the public with this fascinating period. Among the thirty pieces of tomb and church sculpture included in the show are several that begin to suggest the rich mix of the period: a statue of a priestess of Isis, a nymph riding a sea monster, a Christian martyr being attacked by lions.

But, apart from brief references on even briefer labels, cultural context is neglected in favor of the real focus of the exhibition—how to tell real Late Antique sculpture from fake. The objects on display – eight of which are modern or re-cut – demonstrate how the curator of the exhibition, and the scholars who assisted her, separated the forgeries from the authentic works in the Brooklyn Museum’s collection. Details like staring eyes, artificially modeled hair, unlikely or unfamiliar imagery, and poor quality stone all reveal the hand of a modern stone carver.

 

Installation view of "Uneathing the Truth: Egypt's Pagan and Coptic Sculpture."

It is always refreshing when a museum can acknowledge that some of the works they own are forgeries. And this exhibition could have been quite an interesting exercise in connoisseurship, training our eyes to recognize authentic work by comparing the true and the false.  The cases seem designed to get you within millimeters of the objects, which are individually and brilliantly illuminated against a completely black gallery. The wall text is limited to a few lines and does not distract from the objects. 

But it would have been easier for us to appreciate the differences between the genuine works and the forgeries if they had been installed side by side rather than in separate groups. And taking the label away from an object and posting it on a column, around a corner, or on a very dark spot on a wall is not helpful.

The exhibition also fails to engage or challenge its audience. There are no pieces of questionable authenticity on which we could practice our new connoisseur’s eye. There is no glimpse into the curatorial dialogue, no piece over which scholars might disagree. The curator has already decided what is real and fake, and her conclusions are presented in a form as black and white as the installation.

The focus on authenticity in this show is so strong, and the type of objects exhibited so limited, that you are unlikely to emerge with a deeper understanding or appreciation of the culture.  If you really want to get a feel for the Late Antique period, start at the Metropolitan Museum of Art. Begin in the “Roman Period” galleries in the Egyptian wing, and then take a look at the “Byzantine” galleries beside and underneath the main staircase. Both sets of galleries have been recently and beautifully re-installed with a wide range of media. Objects from this period are often on display at the end of the “Ancient Near East” galleries, as well. After that, if you want to see additional, and very fine, examples of Late Antique sculpture, by all means go to “Unearthing the Truth” at the Brooklyn Museum of Art.

 

“Unearthing the Truth: Egypt's Pagan and Coptic Sculpture" is on view through May 10th

The Brooklyn Museum of Art

200 Eastern Parkway, Brooklyn

Take the 2 or 3 train to Eastern Parkway/ Brooklyn Museum or the B71 bus

Museum Hours: W-F, 10am-5pm, Sat & Sun 11am-6pm Web Site: www.brooklynmuseum.org

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The exhibition - eight of which are modern or re-cut - showing how the curator of the exhibition, and the scientists who helped her separate from counterfeit authentic works from the collection of the Brooklyn Museum.

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