Maliku of Palmyra Sculpture On History Visit To National Museum Edinburgh Scotland

Tour Scotland 4K short travel video clip, with music, of the Maliku of Palmyra sculpture on ancestry, history visit to the National Museum in Edinburgh, Britain, United Kingdom. Palmyra is an ancient city in located 134 miles North East of damascus the capital of Syria. The city grew wealthy from trade caravans; the Palmyrenes became renowned as merchants who established colonies along the Silk Road and operated throughout the Roman Empire. This sculpture is a type of funerary monument characteristic of the prosperous caravan city of Palmyra during the first three centuries A.D. Reliefs with a representation of the deceased and a short identifying inscription were used to seal burial niches in elaborately decorated communal tombs; those with a half length or bust format became prevalent sometime after A.D. 65. The sculpture depicts a beardless young man or boy dressed in a draped garment, probably a Greek-style tunic, with a decorative border at the neckline. He holds a shallow bowl with a diamond-patterned surface in his left hand, carved in high relief; the thumb is modeled completely in the round. His expression is serene, although the intensity of his gaze is emphasized by the large size of his eyes, and the incised iris and drilled pupil of each eye. Tear ducts are indicated at the inner corners, and an incised line above each eye marks the eyebrows. His hair is depicted as a row of uniform wavy curls that cover his head like a cap, ending above the ears. The background of the relief is blank except for an inscription in Palmyrene Aramaic to the left of his head giving his name and lineage. Carved in soft local limestone, the relief shows signs of wear including damage to the nose and mouth, although the outline of the lips remains. The modeling of the cheeks, chin, and the lines across the throat suggest a youthful fullness. Stylistically, the relief can be dated to around 150-200 A.D., evidenced by the figure’s beardlessness and the manner in which the eyes are carved. All photographs are copyright of Sandy Stevenson, Tour Scotland, and may not be used without permission.

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