A special exhibition titled "Man, God & Nature in the Ancient World: Masterpieces from The Al Thani Collection," which aims to evoke the ancient world through 117 items from the collection assembled by Qatari Prince Sheikh Hamad bin Abdullah Al Thani, is being held at the Tokyo National Museum in Taito Ward, Tokyo, through Feb. 9, 2020.
Through masterpieces of the ancient era from across the globe, visitors can understand how people of long ago expressed themselves and how they viewed nature, deities and the afterlife.
Prince Al Thani said in his foreword to the exhibition catalog that it "explores the way in which people of the ancient world addressed and interpreted the forces around them. Visitors to the exhibition can admire these high points of artistic creation, made with various materials, and inspired by disparate influences and beliefs."
The exhibition is divided into three chapters: Man, God and Nature. Chapter 1 represents the time when class emerged in societies and those who reigned needed to show their dignity and authority through various means such as decorations and self-portraits.
"Head of a Royal Figure" is a powerful portrait of a young man made of red jasper. The head is less than 10 centimeters high and is cut flat on top so that a crown could be attached, showing that the statuette is a royal figure. The eyes and eyebrows were inlaid, probably with colored stones. This figure shows that the ruling class wanted to leave idealized portraits of themselves.
God is the theme of Chapter 2. "Stargazer," one of the best exhibits, is a 20-centimeter-tall woman who appears to stare up into the sky. This simple yet refined statuette carved from marble is estimated to date from around 3000 BC.
In the final chapter, attention is paid to nature, especially wild animals such as lions, which were regarded as a symbol of power. Animal motifs were also used in rhyton drinking vessels, such as a 13.4-centimeter-high Bronze Age rhyton shaped like a stag, with a tube extending from the animal's mouth like a straw. It must have been filled through the wide opening on the back. The rhyton was once inlaid with stones: Two of them remain, one orange and the other grayish white. The deer's skin is depicted with fine dotted lines.
Takuzo Onozuka, assistant curator at the museum, said: "This is a unique exhibition in the sense that when you walk around the exhibition space you can get an overall picture of the ancient world. You can observe differences between various areas in the world. At the same time, you can also appreciate the common value that lies beneath different cultures."
The exhibition is held in Room 3 of the Asian Gallery at the museum.
Closed on Mondays (except Jan. 13) and from Dec. 26 to Jan. 1, as well as Jan. 14. Open 9:30 a.m. to 5 p.m. except Fridays and Saturdays, when it closes at 9 p.m. Admission is 620 yen for adults and 410 yen for university students.
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