Search the collections

Reproduction of the

Fullscreen

Eros, God of Love

Eros, God of Love
(00:49:32) 842 views

Related Content

Reproduction of a painted limestone sarcophagus

Reproduction of a painted limestone sarcophagus

Reproduction of the

Reproduction of the "Phaistos Disk"

Reproduction of the stone

Reproduction of the stone "Chieftain Cup"

Reproduction of a stone vase fragment with offering bearers at a shrine

Reproduction of a stone vase fragment with offering bearers at a shrine

Reproduction of a Marine-style, terracotta stirrup jar

Reproduction of a Marine-style, terracotta stirrup jar

Browse current and upcoming exhibitions and events.

Exhibitions:

Events:

Events:

Reproduction of the "Priest-King" from Knossos

After a restoration by Emile Gilliéron 

Period:
Late Minoan IB
Date:
ca. 1525-1450 B.C.
Culture:
Minoan
Medium:
painted plaster
Dimensions:
Other: 88 1/4 x 50 1/4 x 6 in. (224.2 x 127.6 x 15.2 cm)
Credit Line:
Rogers Fund, 1907
Accession Number:
07.99.9a-f

This artwork is not on display

  • Description

    For Sir Arthur Evans, the "Priest-King" represented a portrayal of one of the priestly rulers of Knossos; to this day, it ranks among the most emblematic images of Minoan Crete. The Metropolitan acquired copies of the relief's six main fragments and following a photograph of the elder Gillieron's 1905 restoration of the fresco, assembled them into the work seen here. The Museum's reconstruction differs slightly from Gillieron's in that it provides only a minimum of detail of the unpreserved parts not preserved, rendering it unique.

    Several more restorations were made by the Gillierons upon discovery of additional fragments. A copy of the final version was installed where Evans believed the relief was originally located and he featured it as the frontispiece of the second volume of his monumental publication of the excavations, The Palace of Minos at Knossos.

    Since the remains are so fragmentary, the original composition cannot be determined with certainty, and scholars have long debated the validity of the Gillieron restorations, reconstructing from the same fragments as many as three different figures, including a sphinx wearing the plumed crown. Nevertheless this restoration remains a clever solution that combines the existing pieces into a single figure.

    The original is in the Archaeological Museum of Herakleion, Crete.

  • Provenance

    Original: Excavated 1901 in the North-South Corridor, Knossos.

  • References

    Immerwahr, S.A. 1990. Aegean Painting in the Bronze Age. University Park and London: The Pennsylvania State University, 171, Kn no. 7, pl. 19.

    Evans, A.J. 1900. "The Palace of Knossos." The Annual of the British School at Athens 7: 15-7, fig. 6.

    Richter, G.M.A. 1908. "The Prehistoric Art of Greece in the Museum." The Metropolitan Museum of Art Bulletin 3:24.

    Metropolitan Museum of Art. 1908. Catalogue of the Collection of Casts. New York: The Metropolitan Museum of Art, 26, no. 251.

    Richter, G.M.A. 1927. Handbook of the Classical Collection. New York: The Gilliss Press, 33.

    Evans, A.J. 1928. Palace of Minos at Knossos. Vol. 2, pt. 2. London: Macmillan and Co., 775-90, fig. 508-11, pl. XXIX.

    Evans, A.J. 1935. Palace of Minos at Knossos. Vol. 4, pt. 1. London: Macmillan and Co., 323.

    Evans, A.J. 1935. Palace of Minos at Knossos. Vol. 4, pt. 2. London: Macmillan and Co., 400.

  • See also
    Who
    What
    Where
    When
    In the Museum
    Heilbrunn Timeline of Art History
130018848

Close