Collectors, Scholars, and Forgers in the Ancient World

Object Lessons

Nonfiction, Art & Architecture, Art History, General Art, History
Cover of the book Collectors, Scholars, and Forgers in the Ancient World by Carolyn Higbie, OUP Oxford
View on Amazon View on AbeBooks View on Kobo View on B.Depository View on eBay View on Walmart
Author: Carolyn Higbie ISBN: 9780192508454
Publisher: OUP Oxford Publication: January 26, 2017
Imprint: OUP Oxford Language: English
Author: Carolyn Higbie
ISBN: 9780192508454
Publisher: OUP Oxford
Publication: January 26, 2017
Imprint: OUP Oxford
Language: English

Collectors, Scholars, and Forgers in the Ancient World focuses on the fascination which works of art, texts, and antiquarian objects inspired in Greeks and Romans in antiquity and draws parallels with other cultures and eras to offer contexts for understanding that fascination. Statues, bronze weapons, books, and bones might have been prized for various reasons: because they had religious value, were the work of highly regarded artists and writers, had been possessed by famous mythological figures, or were relics of a long disappeared past. However, attitudes towards these objects also changed over time: sculpture which was originally created for a religious purpose became valuable as art and could be removed from its original setting, while historians discovered value in inscriptions and other texts for supporting historical arguments and literary scholars sought early manuscripts to establish what authors really wrote. As early as the Hellenistic era, some Greeks and Romans began to collect objects and might even display them in palaces, villas, or gardens; as these objects acquired value, a demand was created for more of them, and so copyists and forgers created additional pieces - while copyists imitated existing pieces of art, sometimes adapting to their new settings, forgers created new pieces to complete a collection, fill a gap in historical knowledge, make some money, or to indulge in literary play with knowledgeable readers. The study of forged relics is able to reveal not only what artefacts the Greeks and Romans placed value on, but also what they believed they understood about their past and how they interpreted the evidence for it. Drawing on the latest scholarship on forgery and fakes, as well as a range of examples, this book combines stories about frauds with an analysis of their significance, and illuminates and explores the link between collectors, scholars, and forgers in order to offer us a way to better understand the power that objects held over the ancient Greeks and Romans.

View on Amazon View on AbeBooks View on Kobo View on B.Depository View on eBay View on Walmart

Collectors, Scholars, and Forgers in the Ancient World focuses on the fascination which works of art, texts, and antiquarian objects inspired in Greeks and Romans in antiquity and draws parallels with other cultures and eras to offer contexts for understanding that fascination. Statues, bronze weapons, books, and bones might have been prized for various reasons: because they had religious value, were the work of highly regarded artists and writers, had been possessed by famous mythological figures, or were relics of a long disappeared past. However, attitudes towards these objects also changed over time: sculpture which was originally created for a religious purpose became valuable as art and could be removed from its original setting, while historians discovered value in inscriptions and other texts for supporting historical arguments and literary scholars sought early manuscripts to establish what authors really wrote. As early as the Hellenistic era, some Greeks and Romans began to collect objects and might even display them in palaces, villas, or gardens; as these objects acquired value, a demand was created for more of them, and so copyists and forgers created additional pieces - while copyists imitated existing pieces of art, sometimes adapting to their new settings, forgers created new pieces to complete a collection, fill a gap in historical knowledge, make some money, or to indulge in literary play with knowledgeable readers. The study of forged relics is able to reveal not only what artefacts the Greeks and Romans placed value on, but also what they believed they understood about their past and how they interpreted the evidence for it. Drawing on the latest scholarship on forgery and fakes, as well as a range of examples, this book combines stories about frauds with an analysis of their significance, and illuminates and explores the link between collectors, scholars, and forgers in order to offer us a way to better understand the power that objects held over the ancient Greeks and Romans.

More books from OUP Oxford

Cover of the book An Introduction to Model-Based Survey Sampling with Applications by Carolyn Higbie
Cover of the book The Confusions of Young Törless by Carolyn Higbie
Cover of the book Oxford Handbook of Pre-Hospital Care by Carolyn Higbie
Cover of the book The Oxford Companion to English Literature by Carolyn Higbie
Cover of the book The Changing Nature of Religious Rights under International Law by Carolyn Higbie
Cover of the book Physical Health and Schizophrenia by Carolyn Higbie
Cover of the book Nietzsche on Freedom and Autonomy by Carolyn Higbie
Cover of the book Life's Values by Carolyn Higbie
Cover of the book Critique of Judgement by Carolyn Higbie
Cover of the book Remembering our Childhood:How Memory Betrays Us by Carolyn Higbie
Cover of the book Jansenism and England by Carolyn Higbie
Cover of the book Constitutional Preferences and Parliamentary Reform by Carolyn Higbie
Cover of the book Elizabeth I and Her Circle by Carolyn Higbie
Cover of the book Tales of Literacy for the 21st Century by Carolyn Higbie
Cover of the book Living with a Long-term Illness: The Facts by Carolyn Higbie
We use our own "cookies" and third party cookies to improve services and to see statistical information. By using this website, you agree to our Privacy Policy