British Museum (Part 2)

One of the prize pieces at the British Museum is the Rosetta Stone.  The stone is inscribed with a decree from King Ptolemy V in 196BC. The Rosetta Stone was discovered by Napoleonic soldiers in 1799, and after his defeat, it became the property of the British as part of the the Treaty of Alexandria in 1801.  The significance of the stone is not the actual decree, but the fact that it contains copies of the text in three scripts (ancient Egyptian hierglyphs, demotic script, and ancient Greek).

After about the 4th century AD, when hierglyphs had gone out of use, the knowledge of how to read and write them disappeared.  Because the same text is (essentially) represented in all three versions, the Rosetta Stone provided the key to the modern understanding of Egyptian hierglyphs. 

The museum also has many areas exploring cultures from around the world and through the ages.  Here are some of my favourite pieces from these areas (mostly with religious significance) going back to 700BC.  I'll only have comments on a few of these pieces.

Buddha, 1800AD, dry lacquer, gilding, shell inlay and wood

The belief in Hell entered China with Buddhism in the late 1st Millenium AD. This figure represents a Judge's assistant holding records of evil deeds under his left arm.

Stoneware "Judgement" figure, Ming Dynasty, 1550AD

Budai (fat smiling monk), Ming Dynasty, 1486AD

Shiva and his consort Parvati, India, 1200AD

The iconic "moai" statues from the remote Pacific island of Rapa Nui (also known as Easter Island) were created by the Polynesians who began inhabiting the islands from about 800AD.

Hoa Hakananai'a, Easter Island moai statue, 1400AD

About 1000 of these figures were made, but by around 1600AD they had stopped making them, and had even begun to topple or even bury them.  The island had become deforested over the centuries, most of the birdlife had become extinct, and a birdman cult developed that replaced the worship of the moai.

After reading Guy Gavriel Kay's Saratine Mosaic novels, I've always been fond of mosaic art, but had always thought of them as Byzantine era creations (around 600AD).  This piece, at the British Museum, is thought to be the earliest depiction of Christ, from the 4th Century AD.

Mosaic floor depiction of Christ, 4th Century AD

This last piece is also very interesting.  It is a cuneiform tablet telling the Mesopotamian Epic of Gilgamesh, the first great epic of world literature.

Cuneiform tablet, Gilgamesh flood story, 700BC

The interesting part is that this 11th tablet of the epic describes the story of a plan by the gods to destroy the world by means of a great flood.  The story's hero builds a huge boat to rescue his family and every type of animal.  When this tablet was translated in 1872 it caused a sensation because of its similarity to the biblical flood story of Noah.  In fact, Mesopotamian poets had told versions of the story of the flood since nearly 2000BC.

I'll have one more post about the British Museum with some very cool pieces dating back to 7200BC!