[Authors and titles are listed at the end of the review]
This edited volume presents the proceedings of an international conference that took place in Bern, Switzerland, in 2017. The articles present a diversity of subjects, approaches, regions, periods, and scopes of case studies, briefly summarized by the editors in the introduction. All contributions examine the interconnectivity between various cultures in the southern Levant in the Persian and Hellenistic periods, with most studying pictorial depictions to better understand the processes of influence and interference between social agents. As such, this volume contributes to the study of visual culture in the Persian and Hellenistic periods, revealing a complex picture comprised of various ethnicities and religions of the peoples living in the southern Levant and beyond.
The contributions can be divided into two groups: those that focus on a specific region or site in a defined period, where the case studies are considered in a more holistic approach (contributions 1–4), and those that centre on a certain motif (which can be depicted on different media) and/or explore one specific medium (seals, figurines). The latter (contributions 5–10) usually cover a longer time span (longue durée) and present a broader regional scope. What follows is a summary of the contributions. Two articles of the first genre (contributions 3 and 5) are not presented here since they focus on inscriptions or architecture, leaving images as a side topic or not addressing them at all.
Rolf Stucky focuses on several architectural elements and sculptures from two sites in Sidon (in the 5th–4th centuries BCE): the so-called “College Site” and the “Temple of Eshmun”. He offers an in-depth account of the materials, a reevaluation of the dating of the objects under study, and a reconstruction of their use as part of the architecture. He further focuses on votive sculptures, the so-called “temple boys” and “temple girls”, dedicated offerings to the god Eshmun; finally, Stucky studies the “tribune of Eshmun”, which includes two registers of scenes (the assemblage of gods and the dance of the Nymphs). The uniqueness of this tribune is expressed by modifications of the Greek motifs in Phoenician style. The last piece discussed is the so-called “Astarte throne”, adorned with sphinxes and supported by plant columns with Hathor capitals. Stucky interprets the figure on the throne as Astarte, despite her Greek attributes. While some reader guidance could have helped in framing the interpretations of the various issues discussed, the article contributes to the study of Phoenician art and architecture in the Persian period and their relationship to Greek traditions.
S. Rebecca Martin provides a thorough archaeological account of the transformation of Phoenicia from the Persian period to the Hellenistic period, focusing on the site of Tel Dor as a case study. The discussion of images is placed within the larger chronology of the site, which includes an almost continuous archaeological sequence from the Middle Bronze Age to the 3rd century CE, thus providing an excellent example for understanding changes that occurred in the region throughout these periods. During the Persian and early Hellenistic periods, the finds suggest continuity; the imported objects demonstrate connections to the Aegean (namely Attic pottery vessels), central Phoenicia, southern Asia Minor, Cyprus (terracotta figurines and masks), and Egypt (faience amulets). Martin shows that while historically the 330s BCE marked a major political transition, the archaeological evidence indicates that the more substantial change of the city came after the conquest of Ptolemy II (the First Syrian War), in the mid-3rd century BCE. By that time, fewer image-bearing objects were found at the site, and these were mostly on coins.
Silvia Schroer investigates the connection between the visual depiction of “the goddess” and the lion, which persisted over a long time span. She focuses mainly on two pieces of glyptic art of Palestine/Israel. According to Schroer, the use of these objects was due to their embeddedness in the local tradition, which also enabled changes to their meaning and identification. The first seal, bearing the image of a female figure standing on a lion, is interpreted as the Egyptian goddess Sekhmet; the second, a winged female figure with two flanking lions, is interpreted as Artemis adapted to the style of the “mistress of animals” (Potnia Theron), common in the Iron Age southern Levant.
Thomas Staubli similarly addresses the long duration of images in this region by investigating the depiction of the “divine child”. He provides a thorough examination of the motif in both Egypt and the southern Levant from the Egyptian New Kingdom to Roman times by examining multiple media such as amulets and molds, ivories, silver bowls, stamp seals, statuettes, reliefs, and coins. Staubli identifies several main functions of this image, beginning with the endangered child, who is also the healing deity, and transforms in meanings in different periods and regions, as expressed visually. Specifically, the interaction between Egyptians and Levantines throughout time increased the image’s popularity and altered its significance. For example, the vegetation displayed with the child was dominant in Levantine constellations, which was considered as local already in the Iron Age. In the Hellenistic Period, the image was associated with divinatory abilities. Thereafter, it was interpreted as YHWH, as demonstrated by the Egyptian image of the divine child with inscriptions naming IAHÔ/IAÔ. The article ends with a comparison between the child god and the depiction of Jesus in Christian imagery, as well as a short discussion about the possible connection between Harpocrates and Buddha on the lotus.
Christian Frevel and Katharina Pyschny examine two types of terracotta figurines, the “bearded man” and the “woman and child” in light of the East-West paradigm, which was an approach used by Ephraim Stern in the 1980s. The paradigm creates a rather simplistic dichotomy between figurines of Greek and local southern Levantine style (i.e., those that were influenced by Phoenician, Egyptian, Babylonian, and Persian traditions). The authors demonstrate that such a dichotomy lacks a substantial base, revealing the scholarly assumptions underlying the interpretation of the materials. Instead, Frevel and Pyschny use the term “hybridity” to describe figurines that are the result of the contact between the various social agents in the region of the southern Levant (excluding the region of Jordan). The two case studies are presented with examples: the “bearded man” was introduced in the Persian period and identified as a deity (such as Osiris or his local variant). The woman and child figurines (kourotropha) include four types; although already known in the Iron Age, they display connections to Greek and Egyptian traditions (e.g., Aphrodite and Eros; Isis and Horus). While in the first three types, the female figure is considered as a goddess, in the fourth type this is less clear; rather than motherhood, the latter can be perceived as a symbol of the physical and social bond between the caregiver and the child. The authors interpret this figure as a strong, powerful, female agent.
Ulrich Hofeditz considers Bes vases that were found predominantly in the southern Levant (with an exception from northern Syria). To shed light on their functions, he provides a description of their types, a summary of their contexts, and a comparison to such types from Egypt. According to Hofeditz, the vessels were part of the personal possessions of Egyptian soldiers, since their distribution shows they were found in military centres, and because the petrography of the clay has shown that it comes from the Nile. The combination of a previously conducted analysis of the vessels’ contents (predominantly cow-milk), together with the iconographic examination of Bes (the protector of mother and child; a companion for the dead), and their contexts (tombs), suggests the vessels had apotropaic functions. However, the small corpus should encourage a more careful conclusion (the final analysis relies on only 7 items that preserve a complete iconographic depiction of Bes).
Philipp Frei offers an essential contribution to the local attestations of Aphrodite, exploring whether and how Hellenistic traditions of images and mythology were accepted by the local communities. The figure of Aphrodite Anadyomene was localized in the Levant by means of small-scale art, namely figurines (Maresha) and seal impressions (Tel Kedesh). Some of the local interpretations demonstrate close parallels to the Greek statues, while others show a degree of modification reflecting local Phoenician traditions (Isis and Astarte or even Tanit). Another example of a stone relief (of unknown provenance) depicts a fusion of the figure of Aphrodite combined with traditional Egyptian and Levantine symbols. Thus, the figure of nude Aphrodite was accepted in the east as she was tied into local traditions.
Andrea Berlin and Sharon Herbert provide an insightful glimpse into the archive found at Tel Kedesh. Most of the seal impressions found at the site were created by seals bearing Hellenistic imagery; interestingly, these lack inscriptions, thus showing a clear tendency towards visual communication. The authors concentrate on three unusual seals in this context: the first shows an image associated with Tanit that incorporates a Phoenician inscription (“over the land”, an administrative title); the second has an agricultural motif (with wheat and grapes) above a Greek inscription that states the name of the city (“Kedesh”); the third carries an “armed” feline. According to the authors, the first and last communicated their owners’ identities by displaying ancient, local traditions—in contrast to the second, whose owner chose modernity over conservative imagery. These images thus reflect a degree of resistance to the process of Hellenization, the impact of which is otherwise evident on the inhabitants of the city.
Although the importance of these contributions is to be recognized, some minor issues remain. Some contributions overlap in terms of subject, region, and/or period, and thus could have benefited from each other’s insights. This lack of integration creates, on the one hand, a certain repetition, and, on the other hand, a lack of dialogue. Furthermore, there are inconsistencies between the contributions, such as in the framing of each article. The bibliographical references are not unified and have some errors. English corrections and language edits are required in several cases, as well as the renumbering of some of the figures. Finally, credits for draftspersons (of photographs and drawings) are occasionally missing.
To conclude, Schroer and Wyssmann offer a valuable contribution to the study of images in the southern Levant and surrounding regions during the Persian and Hellenistic periods. Their work, comprising a range of case studies, opens a broad window onto multiple aspects of past life. Continued dialogue on each of these themes will foster greater synthesis and further deepen our understanding of the periods and regions under investigation.
Authors and Titles
- Silvia Schroer and Patrik Wyssmann – Introduction
- Rolf A. Stucky – Sidon und die Kulturellen Kontakte zu Griechenland
- Hans-Peter Mathys Rolf A. Stucky – The Marzeah Inscription from Bostan Esh-Sheikh (PH30)
- Rebecca Martin – The Persian and Early Hellenistic Periods at Tel Dor
- Dalit Regev – Were Columbaria Used in Judah during the Late Iron Age?
- Silvia Schroer – Göttin und Löwe – Eine dauerhafte Liaison
- Thomas Staubli – God as a Child in the Southern Levant and Northern Egypt: Cultural Transition and Continuity in the Light of a Pictorial Motif of the Longue Durée
- Christian Frevel and Katharina Pyschny – On Headgears, Beards, and Clothes: Reevaluating Typological Indicators in the Case of Southern Levantine Figurines from Persian and Early Hellenistic Times
- Ulrich Hofeditz – Trade, Charm, or Cult? Bes Vases in the Southern Levant during the Persian Period
- Philipp Frei – Götter in der Fremde: Überlegungen zu griechischen Motiven im hellenistischen Bildrepertoire des antiken Orients
- Andrea M. Berlin and Sharon C. Herbert – Identity Writ Small: Seal Imagery in Seleucid Palestine