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) built specifically for this purpose.

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✪ Pergamon altar, ca. 200-150 AD BC e.

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I love Greek sculpture. I like the archaic, I like the classics, its restraint and harmony, but, to be honest, I adore Hellenism. And all because of two fragments of a beautiful frieze from Pergamon. In the center of the first fragment - Athena, and the second - Zeus. I can understand why you like these sculptures so much. They combine the most beautiful thing in ancient Greek sculpture - love for the human body, as well as expression and drama, characteristic of the Hellenistic period. Hellenism is the last period, the last phase of Greek art, following the death of Alexander the Great. Alexander was the son of the king of Macedonia, in northern Greece. He managed to subjugate all of Greece, and then captured many lands that went far beyond the Greek borders. Thus, the influence of Greek culture spread over a large area. Yes. Alexander in some way Hellenized these lands, made them Greek. The territory of his empire stretched from ancient Egypt to the border between Persia and India, to the very valley of the Indus. It was a huge area. But after the death of Alexander, the empire was divided among themselves by 4 commanders. One of them once saw a hill near the coast of present-day Turkey. He considered it an advantageous defensive position, and laid the fortress of Pergamon there, which became the center of the Pergamon kingdom. These people built a beautiful altar and created a stunning frieze depicting the battle of the giants with the Olympian gods. A divine battle of unthinkable proportions is unfolding before our eyes. This is a legendary great battle in which the giants fought with the gods for power over the whole world. Let's take a closer look at the frieze. Let's start with the fragment where Athena is in the center. She is elegant and beautiful even in the heat of battle with a cruel giant, with a titan. It is already clear who will win. Athena is in complete control of the situation. She grabbed Alcyoneus by the hair and pulled him out of the ground, depriving him of his strength. On the other side of Athena is the giant's mother. She can do nothing to help him, although she is terribly afraid of what awaits her son. Pay attention to how the sculptor, whoever he was, built the composition. First, my gaze falls on Athena herself - where her head should be. Further, the gaze glides down the beautiful hand, where it is gently intercepted by Alcyoneus. Then her eyes go around his elbow, down his face and down his chest. Then I notice that one of Athena's snakes is biting him on the right side. Then my eyes follow the luxurious curve of the giant's body, moving from the torso to the legs, but slowed down by the staccato deep folds of the cape belonging to Athena. And from there the gaze passes to the mother of Alcyoneus. It turns out that Athena - a powerful, restrained goddess - is surrounded on both sides by passionate, distraught creatures who are defeated, while Athena is crowned by the winged Nike, who flew in from behind. That is, the figures here appear from different sides: from behind, from below. There are many of them, they are constantly moving, creating an incredible sense of drama. It feels as if the entire marble surface rotates counterclockwise around the shield of Athena in the very center of the composition. Many diagonals give the sculpture dynamism. The high relief creates a great contrast between the light bodies pushed forward and the dark shadows behind them. I am also struck by the complex poses of the figures themselves. Athena moves to the left, but stretches out her hand to the right, Alcyoneus raises his head, arches his shoulders, and his legs are still behind. Here we can safely talk about the virtuoso depiction of the human body. Just imagine how it all looked in colorized form. We often think that Greek sculptures were just wonderful white marble. But we must remember that they were excellently painted. Let's now take a look at the fragment with Zeus in the center. Like Athena, he is in complete control of himself and the situation, although he rushes forward. There is no doubt that he is a winner. The figure of Zeus is incredibly powerful. Take a look at the magnificent bare chest and belly, and the fluttering, almost-fallen drapery that wraps around his legs. And yet Zeus fights not with one, but with three giants at once. Luckily, he is the king of the gods, so he has eagles and lightning bolts to help him. Right. In the upper right corner, you can see how the eagle, the symbol of Zeus, attacks the elder titan. While the eagle distracts him, Zeus can focus on the giant, who is already kneeling at his feet and will soon be defeated. On the other side of Zeus, we see another giant who seems to be sitting on a rock. His thigh was pierced by what looked like a torch. In fact, this is how the Greeks depicted the lightning of Zeus. Oh, it hurts... For sure. In this sculpture there is a sense of heroism and harmony, but at the same time a sense of the moment and a certain excitement that attracts the viewer. You know, the story of gods and giants was very important to the Greeks. It contained a set of symbols that expressed both the fears of the Greeks and their belief that they could conquer chaos. It turns out that this battle is an allegory of the victory of Greek culture over the unknown, over the chaotic forces of nature. Yes, and also the embodiment of military victories over other cultures that the Greeks did not understand and feared. Let's now go up the steps of the altar, to the most sacred part of it, where a fire was burning, supposedly in honor of Zeus, and sacrifices were probably made. You have already mentioned that the figures sometimes almost separate from the wall. I think this is most noticeable when you go up the stairs. In some places, individual figures of this high relief kneel down on the steps of the stairs, literally invading our space. For example, one of the nymphs, whose legs end in a snake's tail, turned it on one of the steps. This is an amazing way to bring sculpture into our world. It turns out that all this drama unfolds right around us, becomes part of our space. It must have been an amazing sight back then. I wonder how these sculptures ended up here in Berlin? The answer to this question lies in the political ambitions of the then Prussia. Prussia wanted to catch up with France and Britain, and for this they needed, among other things, excellent museums that reflected the culture of past centuries. With their help, one could become the heirs of the great classical tradition, which was so revered in the 19th century. You know, Berlin wanted to become a kind of new Rome. What I especially like about the Pergamon Museum in Berlin is that they didn’t just hang the remains of the friezes on the walls, but instead reconstructed the altar and restored all the friezes they could. And now we can imagine what it is like to be in Pergamum in the III century. BC e. So, we are in the III century. BC e. we are standing on the Acropolis, on a hilltop in the city of Pergamum, about 20 miles from the coast of modern Turkey. We go up the hill and see the altar of Zeus, and around it - a magnificent library, where probably 200,000 scrolls were kept, as well as a military garrison and the royal palace. It turns out that all this drama unfolds right around us, becomes part of our space. Probably in the 2nd century BC e. it was an absolutely amazing sight.

Story

It is a memorial monument erected in honor of the victory won by the Pergamon king Attalus I over the barbarian Gauls (Galatians), who invaded the country in 228 BC. e . It was after this victory that the Kingdom of Pergamon ceased to obey the Seleucid Empire, and Attalus proclaimed himself an independent king. According to another version, it was erected in honor of the victory of Eumenes II, Antiochus III and the Romans over the Galatians in 184 BC. e. , or in honor of the victory of Eumenes II over them in 166 BC.

According to the most common version of dating, the altar was built by Eumenes II in the period between -159 AD. BC e. . (the year of the death of Eumenes). Other options attribute the beginning of construction to a later date - 170 BC. e. . Researchers who believe that the monument was erected in honor of the last of the wars listed above choose the dates 166-156. BC e.

It is traditionally believed that the altar was dedicated to Zeus, among other versions - the dedication to the "twelve Olympians", King Eumenes II, Athena, Athena along with Zeus. According to the few surviving inscriptions, its ownership cannot be accurately reconstructed.

Messages from ancient authors

Of the ancient authors, the Roman writer of the 2nd-3rd centuries briefly mentions the altar of Zeus. Lucius Ampelius in the essay "About the Wonders of the World"(lat. Liber memorialis; miracula mundi): "In Pergamon there is a large marble altar, 40 steps high, with large sculptures depicting gigantomachy."

When an earthquake struck the city in the Middle Ages, the altar, like many other structures, was buried underground.

Altar discovery

“When we climbed, seven huge eagles soared over the acropolis, foreshadowing happiness. They dug up and cleared the first slab. It was a mighty giant on serpentine writhing legs, facing us with a muscular back, his head turned to the left, with a lion's skin on his left hand ... They turn over another plate: the giant falls back onto a rock, lightning pierced his thigh - I feel your closeness, Zeus! I frantically run around all four plates. I see the third approaching the first: the serpentine ring of the big giant clearly passes to the slab with the giant kneeling down… I positively tremble all over. Here's another piece - I scrape the ground with my nails - this is Zeus! The great and wonderful monument was once again presented to the world, all our works were crowned, Athena's group received the most beautiful pandanus... Deeply shaken, we, three happy people, stood around the precious find, until I sank down on the stove and relieved my soul with large tears of joy.

Carl Human

In the 19th century the Turkish government invited German specialists to build roads: from to . work in Asia Minor was carried out by engineer Karl Human. Previously, he visited ancient Pergamon in the winter - gg. He discovered that Pergamon had not yet been fully excavated, although the finds may be of extraordinary value. Human had to use all his influence in order to prevent the destruction of some of the exposed marble ruins in lime and gas furnaces. But real archaeological excavations required support from Berlin.

Altar in Russia

After World War II, the altar, among other valuables, was removed from Berlin by Soviet troops. Since 1945, it has been kept in the Hermitage, where in 1954 a special room was opened for it, and the altar became available to visitors

General characteristics of the structure

The innovation of the creators of the Pergamon Altar was that the altar was turned into an independent architectural structure.

It was erected on a special terrace on the southern slope of the mountain of the acropolis of Pergamon, below the sanctuary of Athena. The altar was almost 25 m lower than the other buildings and was visible from all sides. It offered a beautiful view of the lower city with the temple of the god of healing Asclepius, the sanctuary of the goddess Demeter and other structures.

The altar was intended for worship in the open air. It was a high plinth (36.44 × 34.20 m) raised on a five-level foundation. On one side, the plinth was cut through by a wide open marble staircase 20 m wide, leading to the upper platform of the altar. The upper tier was surrounded by an Ionic portico. Inside the colonnade there was an altar courtyard, where the actual altar was located (3-4 m high). The platform of the second tier was limited on three sides by blank walls. The roof of the building was crowned with statues. The whole structure reached a height of about 9 m.

This building is not an absolutely identical copy of the ancient altar - only the main, western side (with stairs, colonnade, porticos, statues and sculptural frieze) has been recreated, which is, as it were, cut off by the wall of the room. The slabs of the frieze of the other sides of the altar are placed in the same hall near the walls, that is, the altar is, as it were, “turned inside out”.

From the building itself in Pergamon, only the foundation and partly the walls of the basement survived. Archaeologists have found numerous parts of the decor: bases, trunks and capitals of columns, slabs of cornices and ceilings, inscriptions and statues, and most importantly - relief images of both friezes (117 slabs). After the delivery of the finds to Germany in the 1880s. For a number of years, painstaking work was carried out in the Berlin Museum to restore several thousand fragments, to determine whether the plates with figures belong to one or another side of the altar, to establish the order of the images (the arrangement of the gods on the frieze had to obey a certain genealogical principle). At the moment, fragments of high reliefs are fixed with metal pins on the base in an order approximately restored by scientists. Large gaps (empty background) are noticeable to the viewer, since many elements were still not found.

The exposition was opened only in 1930, since the construction of the museum, which began in 1910 according to the project of architects A. Messel and L. Hoffman, was delayed due to the First World War.

Gigantomachy was a common subject of ancient plastic arts. But this plot was comprehended at the Pergamon court in accordance with political events. The altarpiece reflected the ruling dynasty's perception and the state's official ideology of victory over the Galatians. In addition, the Pergamians perceived this victory deeply symbolically, as the victory of the greatest Greek culture over barbarism.

“The semantic basis of the relief is a clear allegory: the gods personify the world of the Greeks, the giants - the Gauls. The gods embody the idea of ​​a well-ordered state life, the giants - the unexpired tribal traditions of the newcomers, their exceptional militancy and aggressiveness. The allegory of another kind forms the basis of the content of the famous frieze: Zeus, Hercules, Dionysus, Athena are the personification of the dynasty of the Pergamon kings.

In total, the frieze depicts about fifty figures of gods and the same number of giants. The gods are located in the upper part of the frieze, and their opponents are in the lower one, which emphasizes the opposition of the two worlds, the "upper" (divine) and the "lower" (chthonic). The gods are anthropomorphic, the giants retain the features of animals and birds: some of them have snakes instead of legs, wings behind their backs. The names of each of the gods and giants, explaining the images, are neatly carved below the figures on the cornice.

Distribution of gods:

• East side (main)- Olympic gods
• north side- gods of the night and constellations
• West side- deities of the water element
• South side- gods of heaven and heavenly bodies

"The Olympians triumph over the forces of the underground elements, but this victory is not for long - the elemental principles threaten to blow up a harmonious, harmonious world."

The most famous reliefs

Illustration	Description	Detail
	"Battle of Zeus with Porphyrion": Zeus is fighting simultaneously with three opponents. Having struck one of them, he prepares to throw his lightning at the leader of the enemies - the snake-headed giant Porfirion.
	"Battle of Athena with Alcyoneus": the goddess with a shield in her hands threw the winged giant Alcyoneus to the ground. The winged goddess of victory Nike rushes towards her to crown her head with a laurel wreath. The giant unsuccessfully tries to free himself from the hand of the goddess.
	"Artemis"

Masters

The sculptural decoration of the altar was made by a group of craftsmen according to a single project. Some names are mentioned - Dionysiades, Orestes, Menekrates, Pyromachus, Isigon, Stratonicus, Antigonus, but it is not possible to attribute any fragment to a specific author. Although some of the sculptors belonged to the classical Athenian school of Phidias, and some were of the local Pergamene style, the whole composition gives a coherent impression.

Until now, there is no unequivocal answer to the question of how the masters worked on the giant frieze. There is no consensus on the extent to which the individual personalities of the masters influenced the appearance of the frieze. There is no doubt that the sketch of the frieze was created by a single artist. Upon close examination of the frieze, coordinated to the smallest detail, it becomes obvious that nothing was left to chance. . Already broken down into struggling groups, it is striking that none of them is similar to the other. Even the hairstyles and shoes of the goddesses do not occur twice. Each of the fighting groups has its own composition. Therefore, the created images themselves rather than the styles of the masters have an individual character.

In the course of the research, differences were established, indicating that several masters worked on the relief, which, however, practically did not affect the consistency of the whole work and its general perception. Masters from different parts of Greece embodied a single project created by the chief master, which is confirmed by the surviving signatures of masters from Athens and Rhodes. The sculptors were allowed to leave their names on the lower plinth of the frieze fragment they made, but these signatures are practically not preserved, which does not allow us to draw a conclusion about the number of craftsmen who worked on the frieze. Only one signature on the southern risalit has been preserved in a condition suitable for identification. Since there was no plinth on this section of the frieze, the name "Theorretos" was carved next to the created deity. By examining the inscription of symbols in the signatures, scientists were able to establish that two generations of sculptors took part in the work - the older and the younger, which makes the consistency of this sculptural work even more appreciated. .

Description of sculptures

“... Under the wheels of Apollo, a crushed giant dies - and words cannot convey that touching and touching expression with which the oncoming death enlightens his heavy features; already one of his hanging, weakened, also dying hand is a miracle of art, which would be worth admiring in order to purposely go to Berlin ... ... All of these - now radiant, now formidable, living, dead, triumphant, perishing figures, these twists of scaly snake rings, these outstretched wings, these eagles, these horses, weapons, shields, these flying clothes, these palm trees and these bodies, the most beautiful human bodies in all positions, bold to the point of improbability, slender to the point of music - all these diverse facial expressions, selfless movements of members, this triumph of malice, and despair, and divine gaiety, and divine cruelty - all this heaven and all this earth - yes it is the world, the whole world, before the revelation of which an involuntary coldness of delight and passionate reverence runs through all the veins.

Ivan Turgenev

The figures are made in very high relief (high relief), they are separated from the background, practically turning into a round sculpture. This type of relief gives deep shadows (contrasting chiaroscuro), making it easy to distinguish all the details. The compositional structure of the frieze is exceptionally complex, plastic motifs are rich and varied. Unusually convex figures are depicted not only in profile (as was customary in relief), but also in the most complex turns, even from the front and from the back.

The figures of gods and giants are presented in the entire height of the frieze, one and a half times higher than human height. Gods and giants are depicted in full growth, many giants have snakes instead of legs. The relief shows huge snakes and predatory animals taking part in the battle. The composition consists of many figures built into groups of opponents colliding in a duel. The movements of groups and characters are directed in different directions, in a certain rhythm, while maintaining the balance of the components on each side of the building. Images also alternate - beautiful goddesses are replaced by scenes of the death of zoomorphic giants.

The conventionality of the depicted scenes is compared with the real space: the steps of the stairs, along which those going to the altar climb, also serve for the participants in the battle, who either “kneel” on them, or “walk” along them. The background between the figures is filled with fluttering fabrics, wings and snake tails. Initially, all figures were painted, many details were gilded. A special compositional technique was used - extremely dense filling of the surface with images that practically do not leave a free background. This is a remarkable feature of the composition of this monument. Throughout the frieze, not a single piece of sculptural space remains that is not involved in the active action of a fierce struggle. With a similar technique, the creators of the altar give the picture of martial arts a universal character. The structure of the composition, in comparison with the classical standard, has changed: the opponents fight so closely that their mass suppresses space, and the figures are intertwined.

Style characteristic

The main feature of this sculpture is extreme vigor and expressiveness.

The reliefs of the Pergamon altar are one of the best examples of Hellenistic art, which for the sake of these qualities abandoned the tranquility of the classics. “Although battles and skirmishes were a frequent theme in ancient reliefs, they have never been depicted in the same way as on the Pergamon altar - with such a shuddering sense of cataclysm, battles not for life, but for death, where all cosmic forces, all demons of the earth participate and the sky."

“The scene is full of great tension and has no equal in ancient art. The fact that in the IV century. BC e. was only outlined by Scopas as a breakdown of the classical ideal system, here it reaches its highest point. The faces distorted by pain, the mournful looks of the vanquished, the piercing flour - everything is now shown with obviousness. Early classical art before Phidias also loved dramatic themes, but there conflicts were not brought to a violent end. The gods, like Myron's Athena, only warned the guilty about the consequences of their disobedience. In the era of Hellenism, they physically deal with the enemy. All their huge bodily energy, superbly conveyed by the sculptors, is directed to the act of punishment.

The masters emphasize the furious pace of events and the energy with which the opponents are fighting: the swift onslaught of the gods and the desperate resistance of the giants. Due to the abundance of details and the density of filling the background with them, the effect of noise that accompanies the battle is created - the rustle of wings, the rustle of snake bodies, the ringing of weapons are felt.

The energy of the images is promoted by the type of relief chosen by the masters - high. Sculptors actively work with a chisel and drill, cutting deeply into the thickness of the marble and creating large differences in planes. Thus, there is a noticeable contrast of illuminated and shaded areas. These light and shadow effects add to the feeling of intense combat.

The peculiarity of the Pergamon altar is a visual transmission of the psychology and mood of those depicted. The delight of the winners and the tragedy of the doomed giants are clearly read. The scenes of death are full of deaf sorrow and genuine despair. All shades of suffering unfold before the viewer. In the plasticity of faces, postures, movements and gestures, a combination of physical pain and deep moral suffering of the vanquished is conveyed.

The Olympian gods no longer bear the stamp of Olympian calm on their faces: the muscles are tense and the eyebrows are furrowed. At the same time, the authors of the reliefs do not abandon the concept of beauty - all participants in the battle are beautiful in face and proportions, there are no scenes that cause horror and disgust. Nevertheless, the harmony of the spirit is already wavering - faces are distorted by suffering, deep shadows of the eye orbits, serpentine strands of hair are visible.

Inner small frieze (history of Telef)

Frieze was dedicated to life and deeds Telephos, the legendary founder of Pergamon. The rulers of Pergamon revered him as their ancestor.

The inner small frieze of the Pergamon Altar of Zeus (170-160 BC), which does not have the plastic force of a generalized cosmic character, is associated with more specific mythological scenes and tells about the life and fate of Telef, the son of Hercules. It is smaller in size, its figures are calmer, more concentrated, sometimes, which is also characteristic of Hellenism, elegiac; there are elements of the landscape. In the surviving fragments, Hercules is depicted wearily leaning on a club, the Greeks are busy building a ship for the travel of the Argonauts. In the plot of the small frieze, the theme of surprise, a favorite in Hellenism, was the effect of Hercules recognizing his son Teleph. So the pathetic regularity of the death of giants and the chance prevailing in the world determined the themes of the two Hellenistic friezes of the altar of Zeus.

Events unfold before the viewer in a continuous sequence of episodes, carefully linked to their surroundings. Thus, this is one of the first examples of the "continuous narrative" that would later become widespread in ancient Roman sculpture. Modeling of figures is moderate, but rich in nuances and shades.

Relationship with other works of art

In many episodes of the altar frieze one can recognize other ancient Greek masterpieces. So, idealized pose and beauty

We visited one of the main centers of attraction for tourists - Museum Island. In the northern part of the Spreeinsel island there are five famous Berlin museums. Among them and Pergamon Museum.

The museum was opened in 1901. But soon it was decided to completely rebuild it. The current building was built between 1910 and 1930 according to the design of Alfred Messel and Ludwig Hofmann, primarily for the Pergamon Altar discovered by Carl Human. Now in the Pergamon Museum there are collections of three museums: the Antique Collection, the Museum of Islamic Art and the Museum of Western Asia. Every year the Pergamon Museum is visited by more than a million visitors - it is the most popular museum in Germany.

pergamon altar

Western facade of the altar. It is unlikely that it will be possible to photograph it in its entirety in the museum even with a wide-angle lens!

pergamon altar- the famous work of art of the Hellenistic period, one of the most significant monuments of this time that have survived to this day. It was named after the place of its creation - the city of Pergamon in Asia Minor.

The altar was erected in honor of the victory won by the Pergamon king Attalus I over the barbarian Gauls who invaded the country in 228 BC. e. It was after this victory that the Kingdom of Pergamum ceased to obey the Seleucid Empire, and Attalus proclaimed himself an independent king.

Battle with giants

The main theme of the relief images is the battle of the gods with the giants. It is believed that the altar was dedicated to Zeus. But according to the few surviving inscriptions, its belonging cannot be accurately reconstructed.

Nereus, Dorida and the Ocean

Over the past millennia, the altar has been destroyed: its fragments were buried in the ground or built into other structures. In 713 the city was destroyed by the Arabs. When an earthquake hit the city in the Middle Ages, the altar, like many other structures, was buried underground.

In the 19th century, the Turkish government invited German specialists to build roads: from 1867 to 1873, engineer Karl Human was engaged in work in Asia Minor. He discovered that Pergamon had not yet been fully excavated, although the finds may be of extraordinary value. In 1878, the director of the Berlin Museum of Sculpture provided financial support for the excavations, Human received official permission from the Ottoman side, and all the finds became the property of Germany.

Plan-reconstruction of the Pergamon altar

After World War II, the altar, among other valuables, was removed from Berlin by Soviet troops. Since 1945, it has been kept in the Hermitage, where in 1954 a special hall was opened for it, and the altar became available to visitors. But in 1958 the altar was returned to Germany.

In September 2014, the hall with the Pergamon Altar was closed for repairs. It will reopen to the public in 2019.

Ishtar Gate

Ishtar Gate- the eighth gate of the inner city in Babylon. Built in 575 BC. e. by order of King Nebuchadnezzar in the northern part of the city.

The Ishtar Gate is a huge semicircular arch, bounded on the sides by giant walls and overlooking the so-called Processional Road, along which the walls stretched. The gate is dedicated to the goddess Ishtar and built of brick, covered with bright blue, yellow, white and black glaze. The walls of the gate are covered with alternating rows of images of sirrus and bulls. In total, there are about 575 animal images on the gates. The roof and gate doors were made of cedar. Statues of the gods passed through the Ishtar Gate along the Processional Road on New Year's Day.

The reconstruction of the Ishtar Gate and the Processional Road was made in the 1930s in the Pergamon Museum itself from material found by archaeologist Robert Koldewey. Fragments of the gates and lions that adorned the Processional Road are kept in various museums around the world. The Istanbul Archaeological Museum houses bas-reliefs of lions, dragons and bulls. The Detroit Museum of Art has a bas-relief of sirrush. There are bas-reliefs of lions in the Louvre, the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York, the Oriental Institute in Chicago, the Museum of the Rhode Island School of Design and the Museum of Fine Arts in Boston.

Museum of Islamic Art

IN Museum of Islamic Art the art of the Islamic peoples of the 8th-19th centuries, who lived in the vastness from Spain to India, is presented. The exhibition is based primarily on the art of Egypt, the Middle East and Iran. Other regions are also represented by important collectibles, such as calligraphy and miniatures from the Mughal era or Sicilian ivory.

The most interesting exhibits are the Frieze from Mshatta, the Aleppo Room, the Dome from the Alhambra, the Mihrab from Kashan, the Mihrab from Konya, as well as numerous carpets with images of dragons and phoenixes.

The address: Berlin, Bodestrasse 1-3.
Working hours: Mon-Sun: 10:00–18:00, Thu: 10:00–20:00.
Tickets: 11 euros (when buying online), 12 euros (at the box office).

You can get to the Pergamon Museum by public transport: metro U-Bahn U6 (stop Friedrichstraße), S-Bahn S1, S2, S25 (Friedrichstraße), S5, S7, S75 (Hackescher Markt); bus TXL (Staatsoper), 100, 200 (Lustgarten); 147 (Friedrichstraße); trams M1, 12 (Am Kupfergraben); M4, M5, M6 (Hackescher Markt).

Details Category: Masterpieces of ancient and medieval fine arts and architecture Posted on 08/20/2016 13:09 Views: 3696

The Pergamon Altar is one of the most famous works of Hellenistic art that has survived to this day.

Hellenism called the period in the history of the Mediterranean, primarily the eastern, from the time of the death of Alexander the Great (323 BC) until the final establishment of Roman domination in these territories (approximately 30 BC). The peculiarity of the Hellenistic period: the spread of the Greek language and culture in the territories that became part of the states that were formed after the death of Alexander the Great in the territories he conquered, and the interpenetration of Greek and Eastern cultures (especially Persian), as well as the emergence of classical slavery. Cultural and economic activity shifted during this period from Greece to Asia Minor and Egypt. It was in Asia Minor, in the city of Pergamon, that this altar was created.
But first, a few words about the meaning of the word "altar".

Altar

Altar (from lat. altarium) - an altar, a device for burning a sacrifice. Initially, such structures were created to perform ritual sacrifices.
In ancient Greece, the altar acquired the appearance of temples, like the famous Pergamon altar.
In the Orthodox Christian East, the altar is the elevated eastern part of the Christian church, intended for clergy and usually separated from the middle part of the church by an iconostasis. In the center of the altar is a throne.

Altar of the Vladimir Skete on Valaam

History of the Pergamon Altar

The Pergamon altar was created as a memorial monument in honor of the victory of the Pergamon ruler Attala I over the Galatians (a union of Celtic tribes that invaded the Balkan Peninsula and Asia Minor in 279-277 BC).

Bust of Attalus I Soter. Pergamon Museum (Berlin)
The altar was built by the king of Pergamon Eumenes II in the period between 180-159 years. BC e. During his reign, the kingdom of Pergamum reached the zenith of its power, and Pergamon began to compete with Alexandria for the status of the main center of Hellenistic culture.
It is believed that the altar was dedicated to Zeus (or "twelve Olympians"), King Eumenes II, Athena. According to some inscriptions preserved on the altar, it is impossible to establish the exact dedication of this structure. Ancient authors left their mention of the altar: "In Pergamon there is a large marble altar, 40 steps high, with large sculptures ..." (Lucius Ampelius). The same author ranks the altar among the wonders of the world. But in general, there are surprisingly few references to the Pergamon Altar in the written sources of antiquity, which is a mystery.
In 713, the city of Pergamum was destroyed by the Arabs, and after an earthquake during the Middle Ages, the altar, like many other structures, was buried underground.
It was discovered only in the 19th century, when German specialists were building roads in Turkey.

Engineer Carl Human, who supervised the work, understood the significance of the open marble ruins and made attempts to prevent their destruction. But for real archaeological excavations, support from Berlin was required, which he received only in 1878. The first excavations lasted one year, as a result, large fragments of a frieze (framing decorative composition) of an altar of great artistic value and numerous sculptures were discovered.

Frieze of the Pergamon Altar
Author: Gryffindor - Own work, from Wikipedia
The second and third archaeological campaigns took place in 1880-1881. and in 1883-1886. Everything found by agreement with the Ottoman side became the property of Germany. German archaeologists were able to find almost all the main fragments of the altar. The restored Pergamon Altar was exhibited in Berlin.
Subsequently, the Turks demanded the return of the value, but permission to export the altar was received from the Sultan, the export is considered legal.
After the Second World War, the altar was removed from Berlin by Soviet troops and since 1945 it has been kept in the Hermitage: in 1954 a special hall was opened for it, the altar became available to visitors.

Stieglitz Museum
In 1958, the altar, with a gesture of goodwill, N.S. Khrushchev was returned to Germany. A plaster copy of the altar is located in the gallery of the main hall of the Museum of Baron Stieglitz (Museum of Applied Arts of the St. Petersburg State Art and Industry Academy named after A. L. Stieglitz) under a glass dome.

Description of the Pergamon Altar

Western facade of the altar. Exhibition at the Pergamon Museum
Author: Lestat (Jan Mehlich) - Own work, from Wikipedia
The Pergamon altar is notable for its peculiarity (or innovation) - it was turned into an independent architectural structure.
Erected on a special terrace on the southern slope of the mountain of the acropolis of Pergamon, the altar was almost 25 m lower than other buildings and was visible from all sides. From the mountain there was a view of the lower city with the temple of the god of healing Asclepius, the sanctuary of the goddess Demeter and other structures.

The altar was intended for worship in the open air. There was a high plinth (36.44 × 34.20 m) on the five-step foundation. On one side, the plinth was cut through by a wide open marble staircase 20 m wide, leading to the upper platform of the altar. The upper tier was surrounded by an Ionic portico. Inside the colonnade there was an altar courtyard, where an altar 3-4 m high was placed. The platform of the second tier was limited on three sides by blank walls. Statues are placed on the roof of the building. The total height of the building is about 9 m.
Along the perimeter of the plinth stretched the famous Large frieze 2.3 m high and 120 m long. On the inner walls of the altar courtyard there was the second frieze of the Pergamon altar - the Small one, 1 m high, dedicated to the history of Telef, the son of Hercules and Avga.
The Berlin Pergamon Museum exhibits a model-reconstruction of the altar, which is not an absolutely identical copy of the ancient altar. Only the main, western side has been recreated.

Large altar frieze

The theme of the Great Frieze of the Altar is gigantomachy, the battle of the Olympian gods with the giants. On the side of the gods, a number of ancient and fictitious deities are fighting: winged and serpentine giants which are led by King Porfirion (one of the strongest giants, the son of Uranus and Gaia. He was distinguished by special strength among the giants).

Zeus fights Porphyrion. Pergamon Altar in the Pergamon Museum (Berlin)
- a common plot of ancient sculpture: the battle of the Olympian gods with giants. But this plot on the large frieze of the Pergamon Altar was interpreted as the victory of Greek culture over barbarism.

three moira(spirits of fate) with bronze maces inflict mortal blows on Agria and Foant. Pergamon Altar in the Pergamon Museum (Berlin)
the gods personify the world of the Greeks, the giants - the Gauls. The gods embody the idea of ​​a well-ordered state life, the giants embody the traditions of the aliens, their aggressiveness. Zeus, Hercules, Dionysus, Athena - the personification of the dynasty of Pergamon kings.
The frieze depicts about 50 figures of gods and the same number of giants. The gods are located in the upper part of the frieze, their opponents are in the lower part, which emphasizes the opposition of two worlds: the “upper” (divine) and the “lower”. Giants have features of animals and birds: snakes instead of legs, wings behind their backs, etc.
On the eastern (main) side of the altar are the Olympian gods, on the north - the gods of the night and the constellation, on the west - the deities of the water element, on the south - the gods of heaven and heavenly bodies.
The sculptural figures are made in high relief (high relief) and are marked by a high degree of expressiveness. The reliefs of the Pergamon altar are the best example of Hellenistic art that abandoned the tranquility of the classics. “Although battles and skirmishes were a frequent theme in ancient reliefs, they have never been depicted in the same way as on the Pergamon altar - with such a shuddering sense of cataclysm, battles not for life, but for death, where all cosmic forces, all demons of the earth participate and the sky."

The Pergamon Church and the city of Pergamon itself hold a special place in the history of the early Christian mission. At the end of the 1st century, when St. John wrote the Book of Revelation, Pergamum was not only the capital of the province of Proconsular Asia and not only one of the largest cities of Anatolia (Pliny V, 33; Strabo, Geography XIII, 623), but also the most famous center of paganism in Asia Minor. The apocalyptic expression "The Throne of Satan", which to a certain extent conveys the essence of the city, has attracted the attention of researchers for many centuries. In pre-revolutionary literature, both domestic and foreign, the point of view dominated that the “Throne of Satan” is the temple of Asclepius and the snakes depicted in it; sometimes the "Throne" was understood as the famous altar of Zeus, now exhibited in the Pergamon Museum in Berlin.

These assumptions, which undoubtedly have a certain basis, were called into question at the turn of the 19th-20th centuries, when large-scale archaeological work began in Asia Minor.

The work of the English archaeologist and philologist Sir William Ramsay can be considered the first and, undoubtedly, successful experience of commenting on apostolic history against the background of the findings of archeology. In 1904, he published The Letters to the Seven Churches of Asia, which was a completely new reading of the first chapters of the Book of Revelation, based primarily on materials from archaeological research.

Modern Western studies, touching on the topic of the "Throne of Satan" and the Seven Churches of the Apocalypse in general, argue that in the light of both ancient literary monuments and the latest archaeological research, the question of the "Throne" seems to be more complicated than a reference to some local cults. Without denying the negative influence of the cults of Asclepius and Zeus, a number of studies have carried out the idea that the "Throne of Satan" is the cult of the emperor, which, as you know, got its start in Pergamum. The purpose of this article is an attempt to consider the issue of the "Throne of Satan" based on an analysis of the results of the latest archaeological research in Pergamum.

To better understand the religious and political significance of the city, it is necessary to briefly describe its special status, location and structure. In the Hellenistic period (283-133 BC), the city was the capital of the Kingdom of Pergamon (Titus Livius. History of Rome. XXXIII.21.1), in 133 BC. the last ruler of Pergamon, Attalus III, bequeathed his kingdom to Rome, and in 129 BC. on the territory of the former Kingdom of Pergamon, the Roman province "Proconsulial Asia" was formed, which received a legal device in 126 BC. There are only indirect indications of the population of the city - according to Galen (Opera Omnia, V.49), the physician of Marcus Aurelius, there were 40,000 citizens in Pergamon, "and if you add their wives and slaves, you will find more than 120,000 people." Thus, the population of Pergamon, including children, should have been at least 200,000 people, and the total number of inhabitants of the province of Proconsular Asia in the 1st century AD. reached 4500000 . In the Roman period, the importance of Pergamon remains very high - this can be confirmed by the construction of a huge temple complex in honor of the emperor Trajan at the highest point of the Acropolis (about 400 meters above the level of the city itself), it is known that the future emperor Julian the Apostate (361-363) studied philosophy here in 351.

The center and dominant height of Pergamon is the acropolis, which rises above the so-called lower city by more than 400 meters. Palaces and temples were located on the terraces of the mountain of the acropolis, and the acropolis itself, which had a built-up slope towards the city on the western side, and a steep cliff and a lake on the eastern side, was surrounded by a powerful wall. The Roman administration appreciated this geographical feature of the city, leaving it the capital of the region, when, according to the will of Attalus III, the kingdom of Pergamon passed into the possession of Rome.

Athena was considered the guardian of the city. Her sanctuary was located next to the famous Pergamon Library and formed a single complex along with the altar of Zeus, which was supposed to emphasize the unity of wisdom, culture and religion (Plutarch. Anthony, 58). The altar of Zeus was built in front of the temple of Athena in honor of the victory of Attalus I over the Galatians in the II century. BC.

On the base of the altar there was a grandiose relief frieze (a decorative marble composition in the form of a horizontal strip or ribbon) 2.5 m high and about 120 m long. It depicted the battle of the gods and giants, symbolizing the victory of the Pergamians over the Galatians. The altar of Zeus, which towered 300 meters above the city and itself had a height of ten meters, stood on a ledge of a rock and looked like a throne from below. The sacrifice on it took place in the open air, and it could be observed at a distance of many kilometers from Pergamum.

On the acropolis there were temples of Hera, Demeter, Dionysus, Artemis, sacred fountains for washing the victims and altars for their burning, and in the lower city there was a significant complex of the eastern gods Serapis and Isis.

In the IV century BC. in the lower part of Pergamon, the sanctuary of Asclepius (Aesculapius), the god of healing, was built, which attracted seekers of healing from all over the Mediterranean and was considered one of the most famous medical centers of Anatolia.

In the 1st century, the temple complex of Asclepius was rebuilt and expanded: a small theater and terraces with colonnades were built, new buildings for the treatment of the sick and their accommodation. Galen, the personal physician of Marcus Aurelius, who had a medical practice here and became famous for the treatment of the gladiators of Pergamum, received great fame.

In 29 BC An altar was erected in Pergamon to Emperor Augustus. (Tacitus Annals. IV. 37-38). In 26, the city lost to Smyrna the right to build an altar to Tiberius (Tacitus Annals. IV. 55-56), but was honored in the construction of the altar of Trajan, which was located at the very top of the acropolis. Pergamum was the first of the cities of Asia Minor to be twice awarded the title of "neokoros" (guardian of the temple) for the honor rendered to the emperors and for the faithful service of the empire.

Both historical descriptions of ancient Pergamum and archaeological excavations of recent years convincingly indicate that in this city the “concentration” of pagan anti-Christian forces was especially noticeable. At the same time, four main forces can be pointed out: the cult of Athena (the patroness of the city and the library), the cult of the most popular doctor-god in the Greek world Asclepius, the official cult of the emperor and the cult of new gods from the East - Serapis and Isis. The Pergamon Christian community had to confront them and testify their faith by the facts of confession.

History of archaeological excavations in Pergamon

Archaeological excavations in Pergamum began at the end of the 19th century. In 1878-1886. the first German expedition worked, at this stage K. Humann, A. Conze and R. Bonn discovered the upper city on the very top of the acropolis, including the marble frieze of the altar of Zeus. The finds of the first expedition were the beginning of the most serious study of the ruins of the city until today. During the second period of excavations (1900-1913) under the direction of V. Dorpfeld, H. Hepding and P. Shatsman, buildings of the middle city were discovered. The third period (1927-1936) under the leadership of T. Wiegand was marked by excavations in the lower city - this is the temple of Serapis and Isis and the beginning of work in Asklepion. The fourth period (1957-1972) under the leadership of E. Boehringer - the excavations of Asklepion. Modern excavations carried out by V. Radt are carried out in the lower city and are aimed at systematizing the artifacts found.

It is impossible to describe all the archaeological sites of Pergamum, in this study I would like to focus only on those that were related to early Christian history and the goal set: Asklepion, the temple of Serapis and Isis (Red Court) and the temples of the Acropolis.

Asklepion

The cult of Asclepius really was something that confused the Christian consciousness, because. the doctor-god was officially called the "savior (healer)" - σωτήρ, and the symbol of the cult was snakes wrapping around a bowl (a symbol of modern medicine). These negative biblical symbols could cause a negative reaction from both Jews and Christians.

Asclepius was the most famous healing god in the Greco-Roman world, whose most famous sanctuary was at Epidaurus in Greece. Two other equally important sanctuaries, both in status and in size, were located on the island of Kos and in Pergamon. Smaller shrines were built at Athens, Corinth, and Rome. As a minimum, the sanctuary of Asclepius usually included a temple, a spring for cleansing and rooms for treatment; later, a theater, baths, a gymnasium and a library were built as part of a single complex. Aklepion, in its essence, resembled a modern sanatorium, where patients could stay for a long time, and various psychosomatic methods were used for treatment. Cured visitors to the sanctuaries brought gifts to Asclepius in the form of gold or silver copies of those parts of the body that were healed - these sacrifices can be seen in the archaeological museum of Bergama.

Asclepion of Pergamum, built in the 4th century BC, reached its highest glory by the 2nd century AD. It was at this time that it grew and became a truly ancient medical academy, and Asclepius began to be called the Pergamon god (Pergameus Deus). Smyrna orator of the 2nd century AD Aelius Aristides, who suffered from many diseases, spent about two years in this Asclepion and enthusiastically described in his "Sacred Tales" the various forms of treatment practiced by the doctors of Pergamum: cold water baths, mud baths, bloodletting, fasting, herbal medicine, music therapy, incubation (sleep in the sanctuary) and intense exercise. At the same time, he calls Asclepius a "savior" (σωτήρ, Θεός σωτήρ).

The so-called Sacred Road - Via Tecta, (Latin tecta - secret, secret) led from the city to the center of Asklepion, about 800 meters long, decorated with a colonnade and ending with an arch with the inscription "Entrance is forbidden to Death." The road led to the courtyard, where there was an altar to Asclepius, decorated with the image of snakes, the entire sanctuary was surrounded by a colonnade, which is now partially restored. To the right of the arched entrance are the ruins of a square building - the library of this medical institution. Niches in the walls were shelves for manuscripts.

Asklepion had his own theater for 3500 spectators, located near the library. Treatment with "art" was an obligatory component for patients staying in this sanatorium. The theater has been restored almost completely, taking into account all acoustic requirements, and today it is used as a stage for theatrical performances, attracting numerous tourists.

The temple of Asclepius, round in shape with a diameter of 24 meters, was not far from the entrance, but only the base remained of it. The temple was built in 150 AD. on donations from the Roman consul Lucius Rufinus, who was undergoing treatment here. Not far from the temple is the main building of Asklepion - a fairly well-preserved hospital, also round in shape with a total diameter of about 40 meters. This strange building is the subject of the most careful study of archaeologists, but so far the purpose of the rooms and the very principle of treatment in this building remain a mystery. The central two-tiered rotunda with a diameter of more than 26 meters was supposedly the main hospital of Asklepion, 6 apse rooms adjoin the rotunda with water supply and sewerage.

An underground tunnel about 100 meters long leads from the hospital diagonally through the entire Asklepion to the sacred spring - this part of the ancient sanatorium is very well preserved. It is assumed that the tunnel had some kind of sacred use in the image of modern psychological relief rooms. From above, there are light and dormer windows, filling the room with soft light and the quiet sound of the street, and from below, water flowed down the stone steps, creating an atmosphere of peace and tranquility.

The central place of Asklepion is a sacred spring in the courtyard, the water of which fed the entire complex. In different parts of the complex there were fountains, baths and pools of various shapes and purposes. Next to the source was a room for incubation (sacred sleep). Asclepius himself had to visit the patient during sleep and report something important, which was then interpreted by local priests (the method of “treatment by sleep” is still the subject of medical discussion today). Sacred sleep was considered the culmination of the treatment. Those who received healing in Asklepion left numerous inscriptions on the stone steles of the courtyard and golden offerings in the form of healed organs.

The area of ​​the rectangular space of the courtyard is 110x130 meters; small temples of the gods-physicians of a smaller rank were built in the corners of the courtyard: Apollo, Hygiene and Telesphorus.

Asklepion was a sacred place, the territory of the god. The rules of ritual purity were strictly observed here: inside the temple enclosure it was impossible to die or be born. Outside Asklepion there was a special building "Katagogion", where incurable patients died, and there was even a cemetery.

It can be assumed that the cult of Asclepius - the savior (healer) was a rather serious challenge for the Christian consciousness, since behind it, unlike the rest of paganism, there was real help to people. Many researchers of early Christian art drew attention to the similarity of the surviving images of Asclepius and the earliest images of Jesus Christ. Numerous hymns and praises in honor of Asclepius, which have come down to us in a variety of versions, testify to the real reverence for this doctor-god.

Archaeological excavations in Asklepion allow us to conclude that already in the 4th century there was a Christian temple on the territory of the sanctuary. The Church invited people to pray not to an earthly savior, but to a Heavenly Savior. Early Christian history does not record the facts of the confrontation between the Church and Asclepion, he continued to function for many more centuries. The pagan temples of the complex became Christian, and the healers, having adopted Christianity, continued to fulfill their high duty. The Church, accepting the achievements of ancient medicine, cleansed it of pagan layers and showed that healing, as a result of medical experience and knowledge, is, however, in the hands of the One Who is the true Lord of both life and death.

Church of St. John the Evangelist (Red Court)

Right in the center of the modern city of Bergama are the majestic ruins of the temple complex, conventionally called the Red Court (English Red Hall or Crimson Court) and occupying an area of ​​280x130 meters. Before the start of archaeological research of this object in 1927-1936. it was believed that this is a Christian basilica built at the turn of the 4th-5th centuries. during the time of Emperor Theodosius - such a view is present in many pre-revolutionary publications. Excavations have shown that this temple was built at the turn of the 1st-2nd centuries. and was dedicated to the popular Egyptian gods Serapis and Isis, the completion of construction dates back to the reign of Emperor Hadrian. By design, the temple complex has no analogues in Greco-Roman architecture: a huge rectangular central courtyard (hall) made of red brick was erected directly above the Selin stream, which diagonally flows under it in the soil layer along two laid vaulted channels. Next to the central hall, there are two more temples symmetrically, but already round in shape, 22 meters high and 16 meters in diameter. There are many historical and archaeological hypotheses regarding these three relatively well-preserved temples, but it is not possible to list them all. The central temple (basilica) measuring 60x26 meters, oriented to the East, was divided inside by a water barrier 6 meters wide into the eastern and western parts. Inside this pool were three more rectangular marble bowls - all this was used in various cleansing rituals. The outer eastern wall of the temple, according to the assumptions of archaeologists, was originally curved inward in the form of an apse, and in the later Christian period, the apse was rebuilt with a convex part outwards.

The inner eastern, sacred part of the temple was dark, towering 2 meters above the western one, the western part was light and had 5 large arched windows on each side, statues of gods were installed in the window arches. In the eastern, high part, there was a podium 2 meters high and a base 8x8 meters, on which stood a statue of Serapis and Isis (back to back) 12 meters high. This huge statue has survived almost without damage - it was discovered by archaeologists in the courtyard of the temple. The statue was divided into 4 parts and assembled as a "constructor". The results of the excavations carried out by the German archaeological expedition are very important for the correct assessment of one of the most popular pagan cults of the 1st-2nd centuries. The statue of Serapis-Isis turned out to be hollow - inside its lower 3-meter part there is a room for a person, and the upper parts have cavities that go to the head of the statue and create the effect of a mouthpiece. Excavations in the temple itself showed that all three of its parts were connected by underground passages, and from the main temple the underground passage went for about 50 meters to the priest's house. Under the podium in the eastern, sacred part of the temple, a spacious underground room was opened, which was most likely a place for priests, because. from it steps led directly to the "speaking" statue.

Archaeological excavations indicate that already at the end of the 4th century, i.e. immediately after the decree of Emperor Theodosius in 392 on the ban on pagan gatherings, the temple of Serapis was converted into the church of St. John the Evangelist. And here, as in the case of Asclepius, history does not record any confrontation between pagans and Christians. If Serapis and Isis had really been revered in the 4th century, spontaneous popular resistance would have arisen, but this did not happen, which is fully confirmed by the correspondence of Pliny and Trajan and the caustic satire of Lucian (“Conversations of the Gods”) about the complete indifference of the people to the old gods. The eastern gods Serapis and Isis, with all their external attractiveness, were positioned as gods for the initiates and could hardly be a force opposing the Church.

It can also be assumed that people guessed about the “creative approach” of the priests to worship, and when Theodosius decree was issued, large statues were simply taken out into the courtyard of the temple and left, where they lay until the start of archaeological excavations in the 20th century.

The internal structure of the church of St. John the Theologian, already a cathedral at the end of the 4th century, underwent some changes: an altar was installed in the eastern part, two rows of columns and balconies above them in the western part, the floor was leveled in place of the pool. Today it is difficult to imagine what the height of the temple was - the ruins of the walls break off with marble decoration at a height of about 17 meters, taking into account the roof, the temple could well reach 20 meters in height.

Two round symmetrical temples on the north and south sides of the central basilica once represented a single temple ensemble, connected both underground and above ground with the basilica. Each of the towers had only one round window in the dome with a diameter of 2 meters, which created an atmosphere of twilight and mystery, in the walls there were niches for statues of gods, and in the western part there were steps leading to an underground pool. Both towers, like the main temple of Serapis, were converted into churches in the 4th century; today one of the towers is a museum, the other is a functioning mosque.

The temple complex had a huge courtyard (now partly built up with modern houses), decorated around the perimeter with a colonnade 15 meters high and small pools for ritual ablutions. The entrance to the temple of the Egyptian gods, most likely, was not open. The whole complex, like a medieval castle, was surrounded by an 8-meter wall, fragments of which have survived to this day.

Today, the entire courtyard of the complex is a field of thematically arranged archaeological finds, which are described by the scientists of the German archaeological expedition.

Temples of the Acropolis

The Acropolis is a natural mountain about 400 meters high, on which the temple and administrative buildings of the ancient city were located in three tiers. On the uppermost tier, visible from all sides for many kilometers, was erected in the 2nd century AD. Trajan's hexastyle temple - it was built in the classical Greco-Roman style and occupied an area of ​​75x90 meters. During excavations in the temple, 4-meter statues of two emperors, Trajan and Hadrian, were found, in front of which, probably, there was the main city altar of the all-imperial cult.

A little lower than Trayanum was the temple of the patroness of the city and the library - Athena, built in the 3rd century BC. Today, only the ruins of the foundation and the base of the columns remain from the temple. As noted earlier, it was in this temple that the statue of Octavian Augustus was installed for veneration, i.e. from this place, the cult of the emperor began to spread throughout Asia Minor. Today, only the foundation of an ancient temple opens up to the gaze of the traveler, but as early as the beginning of the 20th century, the entire space of the Acropolis was literally littered with fragments of columns, friezes and capitals, dismantled by researchers of German expeditions.

On the same level with the temple of Athena was the altar (temple) of Zeus, which was sometimes identified with the “throne of Satan” due to some visual similarity of the temple with the throne. This temple, like the temple of Athena, was destroyed in the Byzantine period due to too obvious apocalyptic associations, some of its materials were used to strengthen the walls and build new buildings of the Acropolis. Fragments of columns and a marble frieze lay on the site of the former temple until the start of the first German archaeological expedition at the beginning of the 19th century.

When, during the Greco-Turkish war, it became clear to the countries participating in the hostilities that it would not be possible to divide Turkey into spheres of influence, all the exhibits discovered by archaeologists began to be urgently exported to Europe and America on warships. This process of exporting Anatolian artifacts continued until 1923, when the first president of the Republic of Turkey, Mustafa Kemal, prohibited the export of historical values ​​outside the state. The most valuable exhibits of Pergamon are collected in the archaeological (Pergamon) Museum of Berlin. Here you can see an almost life-size reconstruction of both the temple of Athena and the altar of Zeus. The transfer of the altar of Zeus to Germany and the subsequent reconstruction of the huge complex in the Berlin Museum was a truly unprecedented action of German archaeological science.

After World War II, the altar, among other valuables, was removed from Berlin by Soviet troops. Since 1945 it has been kept in the Hermitage, where in 1954 a special room was opened for it. In 1958, the altar, like many other things, was returned to Germany as a gesture of Khrushchev's goodwill. At the same time, an agreement was reached that a plaster copy of the altar would be made specifically for the USSR. In 2002, the casts were transferred to the St. Petersburg State Art and Industry Academy, and now a copy of the Zeus altar is on display in the gallery of the main hall of the Museum, under a glass dome.

Analyzing the materials of archaeological excavations both in Pergamon and in other ancient cities of Asia Minor, some generalizations can be made.

The mentioned app. John's "The seat or dwelling place of Satan" is an image that quite accurately describes the giant altar dedicated to Zeus, which occupied a prominent place on the built-up temples of the Acropolis of Pergamum. Side columns on three sides gave this altar the appearance of a throne. Although, it is unlikely that at this time the old Greek gods were taken seriously by anyone - any speech against them was a waste of time. There is evidence from non-Christian authors of the 1st century who say that traditional pagan cults at that time were experiencing an acute crisis. Pliny Secundus the Younger, being the Roman governor (propraetor) in neighboring Bithynia, wrote to Emperor Trajan that the temples were empty, and no one was buying sacrificial animals. Only under pressure from official authorities (the cult of the emperor) and with the help of all sorts of free handouts did pagan temples attract people (Letters of Pliny the Younger. X, 96).

The temple of Asclepius, Serapis and Isis or the altar of Zeus could hardly claim to be called "the throne of Satan." It is historically certain that the deification of Emperor Augustus came from Pergamum, and the first altar in his honor was erected in Pergamum. According to the reconstruction made by German archaeologists, both the altar and the statue of Augustus were installed in the sanctuary of Athena, i.e. Roman authorities in all significant centers deliberately combined the worship of the local deity and the emperor. This practically ruled out the possibility of evading the veneration of the emperor, even on a formal level.

If we adhere to the version that the Apocalypse was written during the time of Domitian, who approved the cult of Caesar, then the “throne of Satan” is an indication of a new, terrible challenge for the Church. During the time of St. John, the cult of the emperor was already elevated to the rank of official, in most cities of Anatolia, temples to emperors, or at least altars, were built. The death penalty was not applied immediately for refusing to participate in the imperial cult, but in the 1st century death sentences were already passed for Impietas in principem (insult of majesty) (Eusebius. Church History, III. 18). The persecution of Domitian is characteristic as an important milestone in the formation of the cult of the emperor - a state crime in Impietas in principem (insult of majesty) turns into αϑεότης (atheism). The legal mechanism looked quite simple: 1) whoever did not burn incense in front of the statue of the emperor, therefore, did not recognize him as a god (αϑεότης) and insulted him as a sovereign (impietas); 2) whoever refused to honor the Roman gods did not recognize them (αϑεότης) and offended the sovereign by disobeying his law (impietas). The example of Pergamon is very indicative: if a person came to honor Athena, he automatically honored the emperor as well. the statues stood side by side; if a person refused to honor the emperor, he, of course, did not honor the patroness of the city, Athena - godlessness is obvious.

It is known that after the decree of Emperor Theodosius in 392 on the ban on pagan gatherings, Christians began to convert many pagan temples into churches - this is eloquently indicated by carved crosses at the entrances and even in the sanctuaries of the temples of Serapis, Isis, Artemis, Apollo, Asclepius. But no Christian signs were found in the temples of the imperial cult - these buildings were either destroyed or defiled by some low use. The temples of emperors in the Christian worldview were indeed “the thrones of Satan”, because it was through them that bloody clashes between the Church and the beast-empire took place. As R.H.Charles remarks, "First of all, Pergamon was the center of the emperor's cult and, so to speak, "Satan's kingdom in the East." The first temple of Augustus was built here, the high priest of the cult of the emperor was located here, and it was from Pergamum that this cult spread throughout Asia Minor.

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Fatih Cimok. A Guide to the seven Churches. Istanbul, Turkey. 2009.

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Steven J. Friesen. Satans Throne, Imperial Cults and the Social Setting of Revelation//Journal for the Study of the New Testament, 3/27/2005.

Steven J. Friesen. Imperial Cults and the Apocalypse of John. Reading Revelation in the Ruins. Oxford, 2001.

"Pergamum was the city in which all the religious and political power of paganism was concentrated." Evdokim (Meshchersky), Hierom., John the Theologian. His life and evangelistic works. Sergiev Posad, 1898. S. 238.

Explanatory Bible / Edition of Lopukhin's successors /. v. 3. Stockholm, 1987.; cf. Barsov M. Collection of articles on interpretive and instructive reading of the Apocalypse. M. 1994. S. 69; Orlov N., priest, Apocalypse of St. John the Theologian. The experience of Orthodox interpretation. M. 1904. S. 66.

Giblin C. The Open Book of Prophecy. // Symbol #30. Paris, December 1993. C. 51.

Ramsay Sir William. The letters to the seven churches of Asia and their place in the plan of the Apocalypse. London. 1904.

See: Steven J. Friesen. Satans Throne, Imperial Cults and the Social Setting of Revelation//Journal for the Study of the New Testament, 3/27/2005. P. 351-373. Steven J. Friesen. Imperial Cults and the Apocalypse of John. Reading Revelation in the Ruins. Oxford, 2001.

Ranovich A. Eastern provinces of the Roman Empire in the I-III centuries. M., 1949. C.37.

Clyde E. Fant and Mitchell G. Reddish. A Guide to Biblical Sites in Greece and Turkey. Oxford. university press. 2003.R. 273-276.

Clyde E. Fant and Mitchell G. Reddish. A Guide to Biblical Sites in Greece and Turkey. Oxford. university press. 2003. R. 291-292.

See: H. Ingholt. The Prima Porta Statue of Augustus. Archeology 22. 1969.

Urbanovich G., archpriest, Seven Churches of the Apocalypse. Church-archaeological essay. Smolensk, 2011. P.142.

Ekrem Akurgal. Ancient Civilization and ruins of Turkey. Istanbul. 2007. Р.71.

Fatih Cimok. A Guide to the seven Churches. Istanbul, Turkey. 2009. R. 65.

Duru Basim Yayin Kirtasiye ve Hediyelik. Pergamon Asklepion Under the Light of Ancient Age Medicine. Istanbul. 2007. R. 50.

Evdokim (Meshchersky), Hierom., John the Theologian. His life and evangelistic works. Sergiev Posad, 1898. S. 237.

Norov A.S. Journey to the seven churches mentioned in the Apocalypse. – M.: Indrik, 2005. S. 215.

Duru Basim Yayin Kirtasiye ve Hediyelik. Pergamon Asklepion Under the Light of Ancient Age Medicine. Istanbul. 2007. R. 42-44

Ekrem Akurgal. Ancient Civilization and ruins of Turkey. Istanbul. 2007. R.103-104.

Zelinsky F.F. Rivals of Christianity. M., 1996. R. 126-128.

See: Duru Basim Yayin Kirtasiye ve Hediyelik. Pergamon Asklepion Under the Light of Ancient Age Medicine. Istanbul. 2007.

“The gaze of a Christian traveler rests with reverence here on the ruins of the church of St. John the Theologian, built by Theodosius. This church was the best example of Greek Christian architecture after the Church of St. Sophia in Constantinople, its ruins are still amazing in their vastness.” Barsov M. Collection of articles on interpretive and instructive reading of the Apocalypse. M. 1994. S. 70.

Ekrem Akurgal. Ancient Civilization and ruins of Turkey. Istanbul. 2007. R. 104.

Clyde E. Fant and Mitchell G. Reddish. A Guide to Biblical Sites in Greece and Turkey. Oxford. university press. 2003.R. 284-287.

Ekrem Akurgal. Ancient Civilization and ruins of Turkey. Istanbul. 2007. R. 86-88.

Eusebius Pamphilus. Church history. M., 1993. S. 96.

Bolotov V.V. Lectures on the history of the Ancient Church. T.II. M., 1994. S. 15-60.

R. H. Charles. A Critical and Exegetical commentary on the revelation of st. John. Edinburgh, 1950. P. 61.

AltarZeus of Pergamon...It would seem that what new can be said about the structure, which has been striking the minds of observers for two thousand and two hundred years, impressing and delighting? The altar is rightfully considered one of the pearls of the Museum Island in Berlin. It is stored in the Pergamon Museum, the building of which was erected specifically to accommodate this amazing structure. I will talk about what is presented to the visitor's eye in the first room of the exhibition of classical antiquities, about the logic of the decoration of the Altar and about the second life that the Altar has received today. Therefore, if you like the romance of amazing archaeological discoveries and the characters of ancient Greek myths familiar from childhood,
follow me, reader!
When you stand at the foot of a huge marble staircase in a spacious museum hall with a glass ceiling, the first thing that comes to mind is the question, but where, in fact, is the altar itself? And, only a little getting used to, you understand that all this marble splendor with columns, steps and the intricacies of frieze bodies is what it is. Of course, the altar, the table on which the offerings were burned, was located inside, but it has not been preserved, and the whole monumental structure is conventionally called the Altar. I must say right away that we are only in front of a Full-Scale Reconstruction, and it will take a certain amount of imagination to imagine what the Altar once was. In the hall of the museum, it is only half assembled, but thanks to the mirror wall, the viewer gets the feeling that he sees the entire monument in front of him.
In the original, its massive platform was almost square: 36.44 meters wide and 34.20 meters long. In the reconstruction, five steps rising from the platform support a monumental pedestal, the sides of which are covered with a frieze. This grandiose sculptural frieze is 120 meters long and once framed the entire altar around the perimeter. Above the frieze rises a colonnade, consisting of exquisite columns withIonic capitals andprofiled bases, the columns support an ornamented entablature. Initially, the roof was topped with sculptures of galloping quadrigas, griffins, centaurs and figures of gods.

Pergamon altar, reconstruction.

History reference:
The Pergamon Altar was erected in honor of the victory won in 228 BC. the army of King Attalus I over the barbarian Gauls (Galatians). The Gauls were a militant Celtic tribe that invaded Asia Minor from Europe. The powerful Syrian kings, who considered themselves the heirs of Alexander the Great, preferred to pay tribute to them in order not to take the risk of battle. The next goal of the Gauls was Pergamum, a small but very rich state, which seemed to them easy prey. The Pergamum king Attalus I, refusing to pay tribute to the Gauls, led his army and gave them battle. Although the Pergamians were inferior in numbers to the Gauls, their technical equipment was much better. Therefore, in the battle that took place at the source of Caic, they utterly defeated the Gauls.

The logic of the decoration of the Altar is such that King Attalus I, the memory of whose glorious victory was immortalized by the Altar, belonged to the Attalid dynasty. The ancestor of this dynasty was considered Telef, who was the son of Hercules, famous in myths. The rulers of Pergamon revered Telef as their ancestor; from his mythological deeds, and his role as the founder of the kingdom of Pergamon, they derived their legitimacy as rulers. The Small Frieze of the Altar, located in the inner sanctuary, is dedicated to the plot of the myth about Telefe. I will tell you more about it below.
The large frieze that framed the Altar is 2 meters 30 cm high and is entirely covered with scenes of gigantomachy - the battle of the Olympian gods with the giants. Gigantomachy was a popular subject for Greek art from the Hellenistic period. As you know, the outcome of this grandiose battle was influenced by the participation of Hercules in it, therefore, he, as the son of Zeus and the father of Teleph, is the key link here, logically connecting both friezes.
Let's look at the Great Frieze in more detail. Unfortunately, time has not preserved all of its fragments, so we can only imagine how the frieze could once look like.

A fragment of the east frieze, the high relief depicts (from left to right) Alcyoneus, Athena, Gaia and Nike.

A characteristic feature of the frieze is the simultaneity of the captured events. The grandiose figures intertwined in battle seem to be captured in a single moment, all scenes are full of dramatic tension and increasing movement. First of all, this frieze is interesting because almost any character, and there are more than a hundred of them, can be recognized. Let me remind you that the gods of Olympus, led by Zeus, fought the giants, the children of Gaia, whom she gave birth to from the drops of blood of Uranus overthrown by Cronus. These were monstrous snake-footed giants, possessing terrible strength, who wanted to take away their power over the world from the gods - the Olympians. Gaia made her children invulnerable to the weapons of the gods, and only a mortal, according to myth, could take the life of a giant. Hercules became such a mortal, whose participation in this battle decided its outcome. The son of Zeus, he fought on the side of the gods, shoulder to shoulder with his father. His arrows, filled with the poison of the Lernaean Hydra, claimed the lives of many giants. Unfortunately, the figure of Hercules has not been preserved. We know that he was depicted on the east side of the frieze only thanks to a fragment of the skin of the Nemean lion, the trophy of the first labor in which he was depicted.

East frieze, view from the stairs.

The frieze continues on the sides of the grand staircase, narrowing as the steps rise. Here, we find an interesting detail: the staircase seems to be built into the plot of the frieze. Gods and giants literally climb the steps, lean on them with their knees or lie on them.

Fragment of the West frieze, stairs.

Not a single group of figures here is similar to another, their poses are different, and attire, hairstyles and even shoe details are worked out to the smallest detail. Unfortunately, the name of the master who designed this amazing frieze has not come down to us. The only inscription on the south side of the steps names Theoret, who may have worked on the corresponding fragment. The surviving names of other artists who created the Altar tell us that they came from the leading art centers of the Hellenistic world. Obviously, the masters were assisted by their students, priests and those who developed the thematic and compositional structure of this unusually long frieze.
And now I suggest you travel to Moscow, to the Pushkin Museum im. Pushkin, where a very interesting project by Andrei Alexander, dedicated to the plots of the Pergamon altar, is currently presented to the attention of visitors. The author, artist and mime, positions his project as a multifaceted artistic reconstruction, which is an attempt to recreate the relief of the East Frisian. The project called "Giants vs. Gods" allows the viewer to see how majestic the frieze could once have looked.
I will talk about the plots of the East Frisian on the example of these reconstructions.

Let's start from the left edge, and we will move along the frieze to the right. Here, the three-faced Hecate, the goddess of paths and crossroads, witchcraft and magic, accompanied by one of her dogs, armed with a torch, sword and spear, fights against the serpentine giant Clytius, who has brought a stone block over his head. On the right, armed with a bow and arrows, the hunting goddess Artemis confronts a naked giant armed with a sword and shield, presumably Otu. Between them, Artemis' hunting dog bites another giant on the neck.

Summer, the mother of Apollo and Artemis, armed with a flaming torch, beats a giant with animal features in appearance. On the right, Apollo, the god of healing and divination, wounded the giant Ephialtes with his arrow.

The fertility goddess Demeter, armed with a torch, whose image is lost on the original frieze, most likely occupied this place.

The wife of Zeus, Hera, rules the quadriga (according to the attribution of the Pergamon Museum). Her winged horses were associated with the four winds: Not, Boreas, Zephyr and Eurus. According to Alexander's plan, Irida rules the quadriga, and Hera, armed with a spear, slays the giant.

I think the choice of the east frieze is not accidental - after all, it is here that Hercules appears, a character that unites both friezes of the Altar. The one, whose figure on the original frieze is almost completely lost, draws the string of his bow. He aims at the chest of Alcyoneus, the most powerful of the giants, who is held by Pallas Athena (we will see them later). According to the myth, the battle took place on the Phlegrean fields, which lay on the Chalkid peninsula of Pallene. Gaia, the mother of the giants, gave them a healing agent that made them invulnerable to the weapons of the gods. Only a mortal, who at that time was Hercules, could kill the giant. Alcyoneus, slain by his arrow, could not die on Pallene, here he was immortal. Hercules had to put him on his shoulders and carry him away from Pallene, outside of which he died.

To the right of Hercules, the Thunderer Zeus, armed with lightning, fights against the leader of the giants, Porphyrion, and his two younger associates. Zeus is assisted by his eagle.

Athena, the daughter of Zeus, holds the giant Alcyoneus by the hair, whom Hercules is ready to slay with an arrow. The task of Athena is to tear the enemy off the ground, thereby depriving him of invulnerability. On the right is Gaia, who asks Athena to spare her son. Above it is the winged figure of Nike, the goddess of victory.

Ares, god of war, drives a chariot, his horses rearing over the reclining figure of a winged giant.
The completeness of the picture, albeit an artistically recreated eastern frieze, is no less impressive than the altar itself. This wonderful canvas 25 meters long can be seen in the Pushkin Museum im. Pushkin until July 21, 2013.

By the way, in the Pushkin Museum im. Pushkin, there are several casts made from the Great Pergamon Frieze. In 1941, the National Socialist authorities ordered to bury it in damp clay soil under a military warehouse, which burned down during the next bombing of Berlin. In 1945, the Soviet occupation authorities took (!) the Pergamon altar to the USSR, but not as a trophy, but as an exhibit requiring urgent restoration, which was carried out by the Hermitage specialists. From 1945 to 1958 the Altar was kept in the Hermitage. And in 1958, the altar of Zeus, like many other things, was returned to Germany as a gesture of Khrushchev's goodwill, and returned to Berlin. At the same time, an agreement was reached that a plaster copy would be made especially for the USSR.

Now back to Pergamon. Nowadays, anyone can climb the majestic marble steps up to the sanctuary where the altar once stood. However, in the past, during religious ceremonies, only a select few (priests, members of the royal house, and emissaries) were allowed to do so. Above, behind the colonnade, there is an open courtyard where the altar once stood, now the center of it is decorated with an excellent mosaic floor.

Although such interior spaces were usually covered with frescoes, here, as already mentioned, is the Small Frieze, or Telephus frieze, which sequentially, like a huge stone book, tells the story of the founding father of Pergamum.
Although there were several versions of this legend, modern Hellenistic mythologists have circulated the version that made the Pergamon version the most interesting. The meaning of the myth was part of a carefully structured propaganda designed to emphasize in the eyes of contemporaries the inextricable link between the events of the myths and their own history. The inhabitants of Pergamon called themselves Telephides, the descendants of Teleph.
Although many fragments of the Lesser Frieze are also lost, relying on ancient versions of this story, we can reconstruct the sequence of events.

The myth of telephos .
Once, the oracle of Apollo at Delphi predicted to the king of Arcadia, Aleyus, that the descendants born of his daughter could harm him. In order to avoid this danger, Alei made his daughter Avga a priestess of Athena, threatening her with death if she lost her chastity. Hercules, who was staying with Aleus, managed to seduce Avga, and as a result of their secret relationship, a boy was born, who was given the name Telef. To prevent the evil predicted by the oracle, Alei had to renounce his daughter. August was put in a boat with a sail and given to the will of the waves. In the end, the boat moored to the shores of Mysia, where it was seen by the servants of the king of Misia, Tevphrant. Teufrant adopted Avga and made her his adopted daughter, and in gratitude for her miraculous salvation, he founded the cult of Athena in Mysia.
At this time, Aley, faced with the problem of what to do with the little son taken from Avga, did not find anything better than to leave him in a plane tree grove near the temple. There the boy was discovered by Hercules.
Having matured, Teleph fulfilled the terrible prediction of the Oracle and once killed his mother's brothers, the children of Aleyus. The king recognized him as the son of his daughter and Telef, showered with curses, was forced to leave the country. Finally, he arrived at the court of Teuphrant in Mysia, where he helped Teuphrant to expel the Afaretid Idas, who claimed the throne of Mysia Teuphrania, and for this service Teuphrant gave him Avga as his wife. She did not recognize Telef, and he also did not recognize her as his mother. During his wedding with Avga, the sacred snake sent by Athena told the truth that they are mother and son. Then Tevphrant gave his son Avgi his daughter as a wife and made him heir to the throne.

Telephus and Avga, fragment of the Lesser Frieze.

The subsequent scenes of the bas-relief tell of the deeds of Teleph as king of Mysia.
Among other things, the Greeks during the reign of Telephos, sailing at random to Troy, sailed to Mysia, where they landed and began to devastate the country, mistaking it for Troad. Telephos put up a fierce resistance to the aliens and even put them to flight. Then Achilles and Patroclus came to the aid of their associates, at the appearance of which Telephos left the battlefield. Before sailing from Aulis, the Greeks made sacrifices to Dionysus, but Telephos did not have time to do this. A vine suddenly growing out of the ground made him stumble and fall, and Achilles, taking advantage of this, wounded Telephs in the thigh with his famous spear - Chiron's wedding gift to his father Peleus.
Realizing their mistake, the Greeks again went to sea, where their fleet was scattered by a terrible storm sent by Hero, after which, being alone, each ship went to its native shores. Teleph's wound did not heal in any way, causing great suffering, and Apollo announced to him that only the one who wounded him could cure him. Then Telef, under the guise of a beggar, went to Mycenae, where the Greek leaders were preparing for a new campaign against Troy. On the advice of the Mycenaean queen Clytemester, whom Teleph trusted, he snatched her little son Orestes from the cradle and, threatening to kill the baby, demanded help from Agamemnon. Earlier, the oracle warned the Mycenaean king that the Greeks could only reach Troy with the assistance of Telephos, so he willingly agreed to help him, but on the condition that he lead the Greek fleet to Troy. An agreement was reached, and Agamemnon turned to Achilles with a request to heal Telef. Achilles said that he did not know how to heal, but Odysseus guessed that Apollo did not mean Achilles, but his spear. Then Achilles scraped off the rust from his spear and covered the wound with it, and in a few days it completely healed. Telephos showed the Greeks the sea route to Troy, and upon returning home he founded Pergamon.

The altar of Zeus has impressed descendants for many centuries. The Roman Lucius Ampelius in his Book of Things Worthy to Remember (Liber memorialis 8.14) described the Great Pergamon Altar as follows: “Pergamo ara marmorea magna, alta pedes quadraginta cum maximus sculpturis; continent autem gigantomachiam." - ("In Pergamon there is a large marble altar, forty feet (?) high, with amazing sculptures, and it is entirely surrounded by scenes of the battle of giants"). When Ampelius wrote these lines, the Altar was already about four hundred years old.
However, just a few centuries later, nothing reminded of this amazing structure. And only the ruins left from the upper and lower cities could impress an eccentric traveler who decided to include a visit to Pergamum in his itinerary.

Model of Pergamon, reconstruction.

The altar was rediscovered in 1871 by the German engineer Karl Humann, who at that time was working on the construction of roads at the invitation of the Turkish government. He sent to Berlin several reliefs he discovered, which he believed depicted scenes of battle "with men, horses and wild animals", and were created, in his opinion, for the temple of Minerva in Pergamon.
The sent reliefs at first passed almost unnoticed in Berlin. In the end, they attracted the attention of the archaeologist and director of the sculpture collection of the Royal Museums of Berlin, Alexander Conze, who became interested in them, but only eventually realized what the connection was between the description of Ampelius and the relief fragments stored in the so-called Hall of Fame of the Old Museum. Conze immediately sent a message to Humann that he should look for other reliefs. A year later, in September 1878, the Berlin Museum, officially authorized by the Turkish authorities, began excavating the citadel of Pergamon, and Karl Humann, the man who had found Pergamon again, was appointed head of the mission, but that's another story...

I hope that my story has given some idea of ​​the Altar to those who have not yet seen it, and perhaps will inspire someone who, having a few free hours in Berlin, wants to visit the Pergamon Museum.