East wall of the imperial cult chamber after conservation

Item Overview

Title

East wall of the imperial cult chamber after conservation

Photographer

Vescovo, Arnaldo
Vescovo, Alessandro

Date Created

February-March 2009

Date

2009-02/2009-03

Collection

Luxor Roman Wall Paintings

Series

Post-conservation
ICC East Wall

Program

International Digital Ephemera Project

Notes

Contents note

The east wall compositions juxtapose with the south wall, conveying a naturalistic and dynamic character. The top register’s content cannot be determined due to its poor state. However, illustrations of a blue shield decorated with feathery flower buds, two red ocher cylinderical objects, and yellow masonry are still visible. The second register illustrates soldiers in a ceremonial procession, and the bottom register is marked by the characteristic imitation opus sectile found on other walls. The plaster has suffered significant losses since its documentation by Wilkinson in the 19th century. The twisting head of a horse just above the door was recently revealed during ARCE’s conservation efforts, McFadden speculates that the leader of the procession is mounted on the horse due to the resemblance of the position of the horse’s head with other depictions of adventus processions (McFadden 2015, 108-110).
Note: The images are ordered to reflect the sequence of the registers, from the topmost register; left to right, to the bottom registers; left to right.

Statement of Responsibility

Amenhotep III was responsible for constructing the greater part of the present Luxor Temple around 1400 BCE. Under Diocletian, Emperor of Rome, 245-313, the first Tetrarchy transformed the temple site, including one of the temple’s offering halls into what is now known as the imperial cult chamber. In the early 2000s, ARCE conducted several site visits to Luxor to extensively document the grounds and undertake conversation efforts for the Roman frescoes present in that chamber.

References

McFadden, Susanna. 2015. “The Luxor Temple Paintings in Context: Roman Visual Culture in Late Antiquity.” In Art of Empire: The Roman Frescoes and Imperial Cult Chamber in Luxor Temple, edited by Michael Jones and Susanna McFadden, 105-133, New Haven and London: Yale University Press.
Nelson number: 172. "Reliefs and Inscriptions at Luxor Temple, Vol. 2," The Epigraphic Survey, The Oriental Institute at the University of Chicago. https://oi.uchicago.edu/research/publications/oip/reliefs-and-inscriptions-luxor-temple-volume-2-facade-portals-upper

Physical Description

Extent

2 color slides

Medium

120mm color slides

Keywords

Genre

color photographs
color slides

Subject Geographic

Luxor, Egypt

Subject Temporal

Tetrarchy
Late Roman Period
New Kingdom

Longitude

25.698801100701218

Latitude

32.63838839437335

Resource type

still image

Subjects

Egyptian hieroglyphs
Animals in art
Mural painting and decoration
Painting
Altered in antiquity
Relief (Art)
Decoration and ornament
Temples
Fresco painting
Borders, Ornamental (Decorative arts)
Layered histories--material
Imperialism in art
Inscriptions
Art, Greco-Roman
Shields in art