Polygnotos's Iliupersis

A New Reconstruction

Bibliographic Data

ID20533378
AuthorsMark D Stansbury-O'Donnell, Mark D Stansbury-O’Donnell (corresponding author)
Year1989
Volume93
Issue2
Pages203-215
Publication date1989-04-01
Peer ReviewedYes
Open AccessNo
TypeARTICLE
VenueAmerican Journal of Archaeology (JOURNAL)
Journal identifiersISSN: 0002-9114 • E-ISSN: 1939-828X
PublisherUniversity of Chicago Press (PUBLISHER • US)
DOI10.2307/505087
OpenAlexW2330212280
LanguageEN
Citations received16

The length and detail of Pausanias's description of Polygnotos's paintings of the Iliupersis and the Nekyia in the Lesche of the Knidians at Delphi have long attracted the attention of scholars, and Carl Robert's reconstructions and drawings of both paintings have been widely reproduced. Robert, however, departed significantly from much of Pausanias's account, creating difficulties in the use of his drawings as reconstructions. A new reconstruction and drawing of the Iliupersis are proposed, based upon a more literal interpretation of Pausanias's text and close attention to his use of prepositions and other terms indicating spatial relationships between elements on the surface of the painting. The reconstruction also considers the question of the dimensions of the Lesche and the scale of the figures in the painting in order to arrive at a more accurate rendering.The resulting reconstruction suggests that Polygnotos's Iliupersis was spread over three walls, forming three self-contained compositions which have been labeled the sea scene, the altar scene, and the land scene. An analysis of the placement of the figures reveals Polygnotos's expressive use of contrast and juxtaposition in his composition. Interwoven themes of the actions and fates of the Greeks and Trojans, and combinations of references to past, present, and future events within the painting, also illuminate the relationship between Early Classical monumental painting and the tragedy of Aeschylus

Aesthetics · Altar · Art · Art history · Interpretation (philosophy) · Landscape painting · Linguistics · Literature · Painting · Rendering (computer graphics) · Tragedy (event) · Visual arts · Ancient Mediterranean Archaeology and History · Artificial Intelligence · Classical Antiquity Studies · Computer Science · Historical, Religious, and Philosophical Studies · Philosophy

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