Sculpture in the National Archaeological Museum, Athens

Rating:
Summary: A Professional Resource
Review: "Sculpture in the National Archaeological Museum, Athens" is a large-format book which catalogues 800 ancient Greek sculptures on display in the National Archaeological Museum of Athens. The catalogue proper is prefaced by a 30-page introduction to the chronological development of Greek sculpture, and by 30 full-color, full-page photographs of some of the museum's best-known pieces. Remaining photographs, in the catalogue itself, are in black-and-white.

The catalogue describes the museum's 800 displayed sculptural holdings (as with all museums, many more, of course, are not on display) in chronological order. Within each given time-period (the Mature Archaic, for example), catalogue entries are further grouped by category into sculptures in the round, grave reliefs, votive reliefs, and other reliefs. This scheme is a welcome change from the haphazard organization (e.g. by acquisition number) which used to confront the professional researcher.

Individual catalogue entries are printed in a blessedly uniform format: catalogue number, popular title, museum inventory number, material, find-spot, dimensions, physical description, assigned date, photograph, and -- another great boon to the researcher -- bibliography, that is, a listing of scholarly articles that discuss that particular sculpture.

Black-and-white photographs, many of them archival, identify individual sculptures. They are printed with admirable clarity. Typical sizes range from 2" x 4" through 6" by 10". Only 84% (670 of the 800) catalogue entries are photographed; rationale for the many omissions is not discussed in the book, but I assume it has something to do with monetary considerations + the fragmentary or damaged nature of the omitted sculptures.

The physical description of all catalogued sculptures includes damage/restoration, paint remnants, visible details of costume, and even the scientific identification of specific muscle groups. As someone who reads this stuff for fun, and who has read every word of this catalogue, I can testify that its printed descriptions are highly accurate, and closely match the visible photographic evidence.

I hope that I have written enough to show that this catalogue is an invaluable professional resource, hence my five-star rating of it. This is not at all a "coffee-table" book for the general reader.

In closing I would like to acknowledge Dr. David Hardy, who has produced a wonderfully clear and idiomatic English translation. He has set a standard, of fluency combined with accuracy, which any translator in the future can only hope to emulate.

Rating:
Summary: A Professional Resource
Review: "Sculpture in the National Archaeological Museum, Athens" is a large-format book which catalogues 800 ancient Greek sculptures on display in the National Archaeological Museum of Athens. The catalogue proper is prefaced by a 30-page introduction to the chronological development of Greek sculpture, and by 30 full-color, full-page photographs of some of the museum's best-known pieces. Remaining photographs, in the catalogue itself, are in black-and-white.

The catalogue describes the museum's 800 displayed sculptural holdings (as with all museums, many more, of course, are not on display) in chronological order. Within each given time-period (the Mature Archaic, for example), catalogue entries are further grouped by category into sculptures in the round, grave reliefs, votive reliefs, and other reliefs. This scheme is a welcome change from the haphazard organization (e.g. by acquisition number) which used to confront the professional researcher.

Individual catalogue entries are printed in a blessedly uniform format: catalogue number, popular title, museum inventory number, material, find-spot, dimensions, physical description, assigned date, photograph, and -- another great boon to the researcher -- bibliography, that is, a listing of scholarly articles that discuss that particular sculpture.

Black-and-white photographs, many of them archival, identify individual sculptures. They are printed with admirable clarity. Typical sizes range from 2" x 4" through 6" by 10". Only 84% (670 of the 800) catalogue entries are photographed; rationale for the many omissions is not discussed in the book, but I assume it has something to do with monetary considerations + the fragmentary or damaged nature of the omitted sculptures.

The physical description of all catalogued sculptures includes damage/restoration, paint remnants, visible details of costume, and even the scientific identification of specific muscle groups. As someone who reads this stuff for fun, and who has read every word of this catalogue, I can testify that its printed descriptions are highly accurate, and closely match the visible photographic evidence.

I hope that I have written enough to show that this catalogue is an invaluable professional resource, hence my five-star rating of it. This is not at all a "coffee-table" book for the general reader.

In closing I would like to acknowledge Dr. David Hardy, who has produced a wonderfully clear and idiomatic English translation. He has set a standard, of fluency combined with accuracy, which any translator in the future can only hope to emulate.