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THE NATURAL WORLD IN BRONZE AGE CRETAN GLYPTIC: LANDSCAPE ELEMENTS AND THEIR SOCIOPOLITICAL SIGNIFICANCE
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2021
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Art History
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http://dx.doi.org/10.34944/dspace/6473
Abstract
This dissertation looks at the iconography of the natural world as depicted on seals, seal rings, and sealings from Bronze Age Crete, specifically the period from Early Minoan II–Late Minoan IB. Although the landscape of Crete was incredibly diverse during the Bronze Age, the elements included in glyptic iconography, as well as iconography in other media, are exceptionally limited. The goal of this study is to provide a comprehensive and systematic reference for the terminology and iconography of landscape elements depicted in glyptic, and then to provide interpretation for individual elements as well as landscape scenes and settings within the broader scope of glyptic and Cretan iconography. It is concluded that landscapes, both real and imagined, and always heavily translated through the artist and viewer alike, acted as important indicators of status and control, particularly during the height of their depictions in the Middle Minoan II–Late Minoan IB period, a trend seen also in wall paintings and pottery which act as significant parallels for the present study.This study is generally organized into three parts. The first briefly presents the evidence and current understanding of how the landscape of Bronze Age Crete looked and assesses the use of “landscape” in an archaeological study. The second part discusses the identification of various flora, groundlines, and other abiotic elements found in landscape scenes and settings in glyptic with interpretation for their significance and consideration for parallel developments in other media. This section concludes with a catalog and discussion of the different types of landscape scenes/settings. Finally, the concluding chapters consider how landscapes were translated from the natural world to glyptic iconography, how the iconography was then viewed, and what the iconography signified relative to status and power. As a result, this dissertation is both a much-needed reference text and a deeper consideration of the symbiotic relationship between the various functions of seals and their iconography.
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