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Joukowsky Institute for Archaeology & the Ancient World
Brown University
Box 1837 / 60 George Street
Providence, RI 02912
Telephone: (401) 863-3188
Fax: (401) 863-9423
[email protected]
Commemorative pieces of art serve to honour the memory of something or someone as a way of showing respect to the subject. Its latin root is defined a "to bring to remembrance". (Oxford English Dictionary) Commemorative art is not limited to a specific type of art. Paintings, Monuments, Sculptures, etc. can all be used to commemorate a subject. The Egyptian Pharoahs, such as Ramses, built pylons to honor their military victories and themeselves simultaneously. In Pergamon, the Altar of Zeus was erected to commemorate the victory of the people against the Gauls. Eumenes II had won many military victories and in doing so gained much money-this was his way to commemorate not only those victories but also the greatness of his country and people. --Elizabeth Bowman
Posted at Dec 01/2008 01:30PM:
Siham: Buildings have long been erected in honor or someone or something. Triumphal arches serve as a reminder of the brilliant power that a certain figure, people, or country yields. Similar to the construction of the Bubastis Portal in Karnak, Egypt, of a triumphal pylon of the conquests and military campaigns by Shoshenq I, commemoration can serve as the sole reasoning for construction. The Arch of Titus serves as a gateway, but also a commemorative triumphal arch to the siege of Jerusalem by Titus.
Posted at Dec 01/2008 03:22PM:
When a public figure dies in the modern world, we still carry on the tradition of commemoration practiced by the ancients: one may have a statue, library, etc. built in order to preserve their legacy. Even some less famous people can be subjects of commemorative art: take as an example the Vietnam Memorial in Washington, D.C. In the ancient world, commemorative monuments took the forms of triumphal arches, temples, pylons, tombs, and any number of other structures. These might be built in the honor of emperors, kings, civic leaders, and other important public figures. --Ellen Pederson