THE ALEXANDER MEDALLION OF THE MAS, ANTWERP (BELGIUM) RECONSIDERED

ANNALES du 21e CONGRÈS de l’ASSOCIATION INTERNATIONALE pour l’HISTOIRE du VERRE 3-7 Septembre 2018, Istanbul ANNALES du 21e CONGRÈS de l’ASSOCIATION INTERNATIONALE pour l’HISTOIRE du VERRE İstanbul 2018 Editor Orhan Sevindik Editorial Committee Erdoğan Köse Üzlifat Özgümüş Ergün Laflı Ömür Bakırer Ömür Dünya Çakmaklı İSTANBUL 2021 1 ANNALES du 21e CONGRÈS de l’ASSOCIATION INTERNATIONALE pour l’HISTOIRE du VERRE İstanbul, 03-07 Septembre 2018 Editor: Orhan Sevindik Editorial Committee: Erdoğan Köse, Üzlifat Özgümüş, Ergün Laflı, Ömür Bakırer, Ömür Dünya Çakmaklı Scientific Committee: Ali Akın Akyol, Anastassios Antonaras, Şeniz Atik, Ömür Bakırer, Janet Duncan Jones, Emel Erten, Semavi Eyice, Sylvia Fünfschilling, Sid Goldstein, Yael Gorin Rosen, Binnur Gürler, Julian Henderson, Despina Ignatiadou, Ergün Laflı, Chris Lightfoot, Teresa Medici, M.Dominique Nenna, Jennifer Price †, Ann De Pury-Gysel, Rabia Özakın, Eva Marianne Stern, Sophie Wolf Special thanks: Ergün Laflı prepared the First, Second and Third Circulars. E.Marianne Stern corrected the English version of Preface and Brigitte Demierre Prihodkine translated the English version into French. Nuri Aydın (Rector, Istanbul University-Cerrahpasa) Mahmut Ak (Rector, Istanbul University) Hami Eyilik- Efeglass (sponsor) Serra Kanyak Computer layout: Cover Design: Printed by: No. of copies: Publisher: Orhan Sevindik Emir Bostancı Vadi Grafik Tasarım ve Reklamcılık Ltd. Şti. İvedik Organize San. 1420. Cad. No: 58/1-2-3-4-5 Ostim - Y. Mahalle / ANKARA - Tel: 0312 395 85 71-72 Certificate Number: 47479 250 AIHV Association Internationale pour l'Histoire du Verre International Association for the History of Glass http://www.aihv.org Secretariat: Via A. Alciato 2 I-27100 Pavia, Italy © AIHV and authors - 2021 ISBN: 978-605-7880-10-9 Cover image: Roman handle applique found in the Marmaray-Metro Excavations - Istanbul. 4th Century 2 in memoriam YOKO SHINDO 3 CONTENTS PREFACE- Sylvia FÜNFSCHILLING ............................................................................. 11 PRÉFACE- Sylvia FÜNFSCHILLING ............................................................................. 13 VORWORT- Sylvia FÜNFSCHILLING ........................................................................... 15 2nd - 1st Millenium BC/Bronze Age/Iron Age/ Archaic/Late Classical Glass HENDERSON Julian, CHENERY Simon, MATSUMURAKI Kimiyoshi, EVANS Jane, OMURA Sachihiro DID THE HITTITES MAKE GLASS? ...................................................................................... 17 ENGİN Atilla, ATİK Şeniz, ÖZER Ali MIDDLE BRONZE AGE VITREOUS MATERIAL OF OYLUM HÖYÜK AND NEW FINDINGS................................................................................. 35 BROSCHAT Katja GLAS AUS DEM GRAB DES TUTANCHAMUN .................................................................... 49 ŞENYURT Yücel, ERTEN Emel A GLASS HORSE RHYTON FROM AŞAĞI SALAT MOUND IN DİYARBAKIR, TURKEY ...................................................................................................... 61 JONES Janet, MARSH Ben A GLASS-BASED HISTORY OF GORDION ........................................................................... 69 KOLESNYCHENKO Anzhelika, KIOSAK Dmytro THE ANCIENT GLASS-WORKSHOP OF YAHORLYK SETTLEMENT IN THE NORTHERN PONTIC REGION .................................................... 81 IGNATIADOU Despina THE FACES ON THE PENDANTS ........................................................................................... 95 5 AIHV Annales du 21e Congrès, 2018 Roman Glass LIGHTFOOT Christopher ANCIENT GLASS IN ROMAN ITALY BEFORE THE INVENTION OF BLOWING: CAST MOSAIC GLASS.................................................................................. 109 ŠTEFANAC Berislav ROMAN NON-BLOWN GLASS FROM ZADAR (CROATIA).............................................. 119 NENNA Marie-Dominique THE GLASS FROM HEGRA (MADÂ’IN SÂLIH, SAUDI ARABIA) ................................... 133 DIANI Maria Grazia, REBAJOLI Francesca CONTRIBUTION TO THE MAP OF DISTRIBUTION OF HEAD-SHAPED VESSELS IN ITALY: AN UNCONVENTIONAL BEAKER FROM VERCELLI (PIEDMONT) .......................................................................................................... 141 LAZAR Irena NEW FINDS OF ROMAN HIGH QUALITY GLASS FROM ROMULA (PANNONIA) ................................................................................................ 149 ERTEN Emel GLASS FROM OLBA IN ROUGH CILICIA............................................................................ 161 STERRET–KRAUSE Allison RECONSTRUCTING LIFE FROM THE LITTER IN POMPEII’S SOUTHWEST CORNER: GLASS FROM THE EXCAVATIONS OF THE POMPEII ARCHAEOLOGICAL RESEARCH PROJECT: PORTA STABIA........................................ 171 HANAR Elif MOLD-BLOWN GLASS VESSELS IN DİYARBAKIR MUSEUM ....................................... 183 ZACHARIAS Nikolaos, OIKONOMOU Artemios, ARAPOGIANNI Xeni TECHNOLOGY AND USE OF GLASS DURING THE CLASSICAL - HELLENISTIC TIMES:A CASE STUDY OF GLASS KNUCKLEBONES ...................................................... 195 IVANOV Mario, CHOLAKOVA Anastasia, GRATUZE Bernard GLASS FURNACES FROM SERDICA - AN EXAMPLE OF ROMAN PRACTICE OF GLASS MIXING .............................................................................................. 207 ÇELİKBAŞ Ersin, KELEŞ Vedat GLASS FINDS FROM LATE ROMAN HOUSE IN PAPHLAGONIAN HADRIANOUPOLIS ................................................................................................................... 221 BULJEVIĆ Zrinka MOULD-BLOWN GLASS VESSELS FROM SALONA ......................................................... 233 6 AIHV Annales du 21e Congrès, 2018 AKKUŞ KOÇAK Emine GLASS WORKSHOPS AND GLASS PRODUCTION IN METROPOLIS (IONIA) ........... 245 TRAVIGLIA Arianna, PANIGHELLO Serena, MORETTO Ligia, ORSEGA Emilio Francesco, BERNARDONI Anna, FLOREANI Stefi, MORO Giulia, MANDRUZZATO Luciana PICKING UP THE HINT: RAW GLASS CHUNKS AND GLASS WASTES FROM PLOUGHSOIL COLLECTION IN AQUILEIA (ITALY) ........................................................ 255 GRÜNEWALD Martin GLÄSERNE GRABFUNDE SPÄTANTIKER ZEIT AUS DEM RHEINISCHEN BRAUNKOHLEREVIER (DEUTSCHLAND) .......................................................................... 265 Late Roman/Byzantine /Early Islamic/Medieval Glass ŽIVANOVIĆ Miloš GLASS WORKING ACTIVITIES IN LATE ROMAN DOCLEA (MONTENEGRO)......... 283 COSYNS Peter, CEGLIA Andrea, THIENPONT Hugo, von WARTBURG Marie-Louise A LATE ANTIQUE GLASS WORKSHOP AT THE APHRODITE SANCTUARY OF PALAEPAPHOS, KOUKLIA (CYPRUS) ................................................................................. 291 SCHINTLMEISTER Luise GLASS OF A LATE ANTIQUE-MEDIEVAL URBAN QUARTER IN EPHESOS/TURKEY (4TH/5TH–12TH CENTURIES CE) - PRELIMINARY REPORT ................................................ 307 GORIN ROSEN Yael SECONDARY GLASS PRODUCTION IN ISRAEL - BRIEF SUMMARY OF THE FINDS AND NEW DISCOVERIES ............................................................................ 319 RUMYANTSEVA Olga, YUBITCHEV Mikhail, PETRAUSKAS Oleg, CHERVYAKOVSKAYA Maria, KHANIN Dmitry, TRIFONOV Alexander ‘BARBARIAN’ BEAKERS WITH FACET CUT DECORATION: COMPOSITION, ORIGIN, SOCIAL AND CULTURAL CONTEXT ................................................................... 333 BAYBO Selda EIN ÜBERBLICK ÜBER DIE GLASFUNDE VON LIMYRA (1969-2012) UND DIE BEFUNDE ZUR GLASPRODUKTION AUS DEN OSTTORGRABUNGEN ..... 349 STERN E. Marianne Stern GLASS FROM THREE BYZANTINE CHURCHES AT ANCIENT ANEMURIUM (TR) . 363 GENÇ Deniz, AKYOL Ali Akın ARCHAEOMETRIC INVESTIGATIONS OF THE EARLY BYZANTINE SITE SIDE GLASS FINDS .......................................................................................................... 375 7 AIHV Annales du 21e Congrès, 2018 CHINNI Tania, FERRERI Debora, CIRELLI Enrico GLASSWORKING IN CLASSE: WORKING DEBRIS FROM THE SOUTHERN DISTRICT .................................................................................................... 389 COUTSINAS Nadia NEW LIGHT ON THE EARLY BYZANTINE GLASS FROM ELEUTHERNA PYRGI (CRETE) ............................................................................................. 399 TAŞTEMUR Emre, DİNÇ Münteha GLASS OBJECTS FOUND IN AKMONIA CITY SURFACE RESEARCH ......................... 417 STORCHAN Benyamin, GANOR Adrienne GLASS, POTTERY, PLASTER AND IRON: PRELIMINARY TECHNOLOGICAL INSIGHTS FROM THE WINDOWS AT THE CHURCH OF THE GLORIOUS MARTYR IN THE HOLY LAND ............................................................................................... 433 NOBACK Andreas, GROBE Lars O, LANG Franziska MODELLING THE EFFECTS OF DAYLIGHT SCATTERING BY WINDOW GLASS: THE CASE OF SIXTH CENTURY HAGIA SOPHIA IN ISTANBUL.................... 443 BAKIRER Ömür, ERCİYAS D. Burcu MEDIEVAL GLASS FINDS FROM THE KOMANA EXCAVATIONS NEAR TOKAT, TURKEY ........................................................................................................... 457 DE JUAN ARES Jorge, SCHIBILLE Nadine LATE ROMAN AND EARLY ISLAMIC GLASS IN SPAIN: PRODUCTION AND CONSUMPTION ................................................................................................................ 471 WINTER Tamar OPULENCE ON THE DESERT FRINGES? GLASS ASSEMBLAGES OF THE EARLY ISLAMIC PERIOD FROM THE NORTHEASTERN NEGEV, ISRAEL ...... 485 KÜRTÖSI Brigitta Maria A DIVERSE PRODUCTION METHOD OF GOLD GLASS MOSAIC TESSERAE FROM MEDIEVAL HUNGARY, ROYAL BASILICA OF ALBA REGIA/SZÉKESFEHÉRVÁR ................................................................................................... 497 STOLYAROVA Ekaterina MEDIAEVAL GLASS BRACELETS IN RUS’ (ACCORDING TO THE FINDS IN THE TOWNS OF THE NORTH-EAST OF RUS’)............................................................................. 507 Islamic Glass VALIULINA Svetlana ISLAMIC GLASS OF BILYAR: IMPORT AND PRODUCTION .......................................... 521 8 AIHV Annales du 21e Congrès, 2018 ARVEILLER-DULONG Véronique LES VERRES ISLAMIQUES D’ANTINOÉ (MOYENNE-ÉGYPTE) CONSERVÉS AU LOUVRE: UN APERÇU ............................................................................. 529 GEYİK Gül ISLAMIC GLASS IN SOME ANATOLIAN MUSEUMS ........................................................ 539 ÖZAKIN Rabia, CANAV-ÖZGÜMÜŞ Üzlifat, KANYAK Serra, ÇELİK İzzet Umut DECORATIVE WINDOW GLASS FROM SOME OTTOMAN TOMBS IN ISTANBUL .. 549 European Glass TOPIĆ Nikolina LATE MEDIEVAL GLASS LAMPS FROM DUBROVNIK .................................................. 559 MEDICI Teresa A NOTE ON LATE MEDIEVAL AND EARLY MODERN OPAQUE RED GLASS VESSELS ............................................................................................. 569 JARGSTORF Sibylle FICHTELGEBIRGSGLAS ......................................................................................................... 579 FONTAINE-HODIAMONT Chantal, WOUTERS Helena, LEFRANCQ Janette LE VERRE VÉNITIEN SOUFFLÉ-MOULÉ AUX ARMES D’ANVERS, DEUXIÈME MOITIÉ DU XVIe SIÈCLE. APPROCHE TYPOLOGIQUE, ANALYTIQUE ET HISTORIQUE ........................................................................................................................ 587 LIKHTER Ju. A. GLASS FAÇON DE VENISE FROM THE EXCAVATIONS IN MOSCOW AND OTHER CITIES (VYAZMA, MANGAZEYA) ................................................................ 597 JOVIĆ GAZIĆ Vedrana MAPPING OF THE 17TH CENTURY GLASS LAMPS ON THE EASTERN ADRIATIC COAST - CESENDELLO TYPE (HANGING LAMP) ...................................... 609 ANTONARAS Anastassios OTTOMAN-ERA (17TH AND 19TH-CENTURY), GLASS LAMPS FROM CHURCH A' IN PLATAMONAS CASTLE ............................................................................. 621 KOS Mateja GEORG FRANZ KREYBICH AND HIS TRAVEL TO LJUBLJANA (LAIBACH IN KRAIN) IN 1681 ................................................................................................. 629 9 AIHV Annales du 21e Congrès, 2018 COSYNS Peter, DE VOS Annemie, CEGLIA Andrea, WARMENBOL Eugène THE ALEXANDER MEDALLION OF THE MAS, ANTWERP (BELGIUM) RECONSIDERED ................................................................................................ 637 General Themes ŠTEFANAC Marko, ŠTEFANAC Berislav EXPERIMENTAL APPROACH TO MAKING EARLY ROMAN FREE-BLOWN GLASS FORMS................................................................................................ 649 LARSON Katherine A. BUILDING A COLLECTION: RAY WINFIELD SMITH AND THE CORNING MUSEUM OF GLASS .................................................................................... 657 INDEX OF AUTHORS ................................................................................................................. 669 PHOTOGRAPHS ......................................................................................................................... 671 10 COSYNS Peter, DE VOS Annemie, CEGLIA Andrea, WARMENBOL Eugène THE ALEXANDER MEDALLION OF THE MAS, ANTWERP (BELGIUM) RECONSIDERED Abstract INTRODUCTION The scope of the paper concerns a review of one single glass item at the MAS (Museum aan de Stroom), Antwerp which is known as the Alexander medallion. The authenticity of this intriguing large relief medallion in opaque turquoise blue glass has been an issue for some time but only recently an in-depth analysis of the piece and its origin was performed by means of archival, art historical and archaeometric research. The Alexander medallion is to be considered in a debated discourse of believers and non-believers of its authenticity. Various arguments plead for a forgery, whereas others seem to be in favour of its authenticity. The present state of affairs supports an early modern production date in the 15th-17th c. AD. 637 Historical background In 2009 an enigmatic medallion representing a portrait of Alexander the Great in profile and dressed with an elephant-head (Figure 1a), was transferred from the Museum Vleeshuis to the collections of the MAS in the framework of a reorganization of the Antwerp museum landscape. Due to the optimization of its collection management, the entire Ancient Egyptian collection, the Alexander medallion included, moved to the MAS|collection Ethnography – Africa. The rare piece was acquired by the Museum for Antiquities of Antwerp, the precursor of the Museum Vleeshuis, when the City Council of Antwerp decided in 1879 to buy the remaining part of the collection that Eugène Allemant could not sell at the auction sale in London in 1878. The Vleeshuis obtained 462 pieces of the 832 items that the original AIHV Annales du 21e Congrès, 2018 pally acquired via an army of fellahin who ‘excavated’ for him at Saqqara and Benha, Egypt. A number of pieces, however, were simply purchased on the local antiquities market explaining the number of counterfeits. According to Eugène Allemant the Alexander medallion2 was found in Saqqara during Fig. 1: The mould-pressed Alexander medallion with elephantheaddress in the MAS, Antwerp (photograph by Bart Huysmans one of the digs he financed, and Michel Wuyts; copyright MAS, Antwerp) but any other information about the context where it Allemant collection comprised.1 This compilation only included a few pieces in glass of was found and any accompanying material is which the Alexander medallion deserves an lacking. One could doubt the accuracy of his information and question the legitimacy of exhaustive assessment. his findings when investigating the so-called How did the medallion reach the Antsingle discovery in Saqqarah. As such, the werp museum collections? Eugène Allemant, authenticity of our intriguing piece has been a French attaché and fortune-hunter born in the issue for some time, yet no in-depth analMontpellier in 1837, operated in Egypt for ysis of the piece and its origin has been done. the first time in the 1860s and the 1870s by Furthermore, we have to stress that a number frequenting its high society. From 1881 he of pieces of the former Allemant collection was active again in Egypt until his death within the Antwerp collection appears to be somewhere at the end of the 1880s. Archival counterfeits demonstrating what circulated data inform us that the Louvre in Paris and the th Musée Guimet in Lyon obtained a number of on the local antiquities market of late 19 c. pieces from this French “archaeologist-trad- Egypt. er” who was also known as “the Paris vendor Description of Egyptian antiquities” up to 1887. He labelled himself as the “former interpreter of H. M. the Sultan Abd-el-Aziz (Abd-ul-Aziz?)”, the 32nd Sultan of the Ottoman Empire and “teacher of the sons of the vice-king of Egypt”. He therefore was considered to be an attaché at the Ottoman courts of Turkey and Egypt. Living in Egypt, Eugène Allemant was active as an archaeological entrepreneur, but in 1878 and 1879 he sold most of the collection he had princi- The medallion/cameo weighs 32g and measures 51mm by 46mm with a varying thickness of 35mm with the portrait in bulging relief of max. 9mm. The piece is unmistakably cast in a mould as can be observed on the sides and on the shiny, slightly wavy flat reverse side showing a section where a sharp object scratched the surface (Fig. 1b). The casting does not appear to have been done skilfully due to the purplish clouds and 1 ALLEMANT 1878. 2 ALLEMANT 1878, 103, no.743; Génard 1894, 56, no.386. 638 THE ALEXANDER MEDALLION OF THE MAS, ANTWERP (BELGIUM) RECONSIDERED patches, the occasional pitted surface and that rare.4 Usually the members of the Macethe missing sections in the projecting pachy- donian Temenid Dynasty wear the Nemea lion headdress as they saw themselves as dederm headdress. scendants of Heracles and thus as offspring The complete, though broken, medal- of Zeus.5 Therefore, while the message of the lion in opaque turquoise glass shows Al- coins portraying Alexander the Great with exander the Great in sharp profile from the the Nemea lion headdress stemmed from the right wearing the very unusual but conspic- archetypal glorification of his heroic legacy, uous pachyderm headdress instead of the the coins portraying him with the elephant more typical lion headdress. A number of headdress are linked to his prodigious vicrepresentative features are illustrated: the ae- tory at the battle of Hydaspes against the gis in the neck; the elephant headdress with Indian king Porus,6 symbolizing his thirst a large ear, a curved tusk and the peculiar to vanquish all obstacles, and to surpass all rope-like trunk. Concerning the face, one precursors, even beyond the works of Hercan notice the characteristic protruding chin acles. The Hellenistic successors had themand the hooked nasal bridge, and although selves represented with the lion or elephant the open mouth is very specific to portraits headdress to legitimize their ascendency and of Alexander the Great, this is unexpected authority. and unique for coins and cameos. Strangely, Notwithstanding the lack of glass coins Eugène Allemant, originally catalogued the with a portrait of Alexander the Great wearmedallion as « un portrait camée d’Alexandre Aegus fils d’Alexandre le Grand en émail ing an elephant headdress, we came across bleu » under the material group « monuments several blue glass coins that show two parhistoriques trouvés dans les tombeaux ou ticular depictions observed on the reverse of dans les temples ».3 There is, in our opinion, the known gold and silver coins. The reverse no reason to think that the son of Alexander side of these coins show either a standing the Great was portrayed because he had al- goddess Athena Parthenon with shield and ready been murdered at the age of 14 when spear or a seated god Zeus Olympia sitting he became old enough to officially succeed on a throne. Both images refer to the famous his father. However, could it be that Eugène statues by Phidias and are to be understood Allemant proposed that the portrait on his as guarantors of his victorious fortune. The cherished medallion may have represented blue glass example in the collections of the someone other than Alexander the Great, as ‘Bibliothèque nationale de France (BnF)’ he already accepted that the image of Alex- represents on one side the seated Zeus Olympia with eagle (Zeus aetophoros). Noteworander the Great was anomalous? thy is that the name ALEXANDROU is here on the left side in front of Zeus, whereas on DISCUSSION silver and golden coins Alexander’s name Iconographic study is always on the right side, behind the god, Silver and gold coins depicting a portrait where the title BASILEOS is written on of Alexander the Great or one of his succes- the glass coin. Another piece, this time in a sors wearing an elephant headdress are not 3 ALLEMANT 1878, 103, no.743. 639 4 PLANTZOS 2002, 73; Holt 2011. 5 KOTTARIDI 2011, 2. 6 HOLT 2011; 2014. AIHV Annales du 21e Congrès, 2018 is thus undeniably tied to a debated discourse between believers and non-believers of its authenticity. Various arguments plead for a forgery, though others seem to be in favour of an authentic piece. The elements in favour of a counterfeit are that the piece is unique with no known parallels in glass and the features of the porFig. 2: a) The Azara-Herm with portrait of Alexander the Great trait are very detailed and sharply represented. Eugène in marble (Louvre, Paris) (copyright Louvre); b) the Hermlike bust of Napoleon I in porcelain from the manufacture of Allemant pinpoints already ‘Porcelaines de Sèvres’, France (copyright Museum of Fine Arts, the rareness of the piece, alBoston, www.mfa.org) though he knew at that time about the existence of this transparent deep blue glass, is the small cameo in the collections of the Metropolitan Mu- particular type of portrait: «Ce portrait que seum, MMA 10.130.1400.7 With a diameter représente plusieurs pièces de monnaies est of less than 20 mm, the piece is much small- unique comme médaillon, on ne pourait (sic) er than the Antwerp medallion and Alexan- voir quelque chose de mieux fini et d’un trader the Great is represented with the more vail plus soigné.» Conversely, the style reusual lion headdress. Also, the small ellipti- minds the viewer of a classicist style in concal cameo in opaque blue-green glass at the nection with Italian renaissance portraits or Corning Museum of Glass in Corning (NY), a neoclassicist style with a reference to NaCMoG 2008.3.64 bears the portrait of Alex- poleon Bonaparte, a fervent admirer of Alexander the Great wearing a lion headdress.8 ander the Great. Because the Antwerp glass This piece is also smaller than the Alexan- medallion is in no way closely related to the der medallion with a length of 26 mm and a rendering of these portraits we assumed the width of 20 mm. Important to stress in view possibility that the piece could be a product of the disputed authenticity of the Alexander of one of the well-known Italian gem carvers th th medallion is that the glass coins and cam- of the late 18 -early 19 c. based in Rome, 10 11 eos cited here are questionable and some- such as Paoletti and Antonio Berini, who times defined as late 19th-early 20th c. pro- created antique intaglios in a neoclassical duction. In this perspective it is noteworthy or empire style for European and American that Agnès Rammant-Peeters speaks9 about travellers undertaking the Grand Tour. Ana modern impression made in a supposedly other point we considered was that Napoleon Ptolemaic mould. The Alexander medallion was eager to have himself compared with Alexander the Great as he was passionate 7 RICHTER 2006, 129, no.644, pl.73 about his achievements. Not long after the 8 https://www.cmog.org/artwork/portrait-cameo-head-youth ?search=collection%3A401ed3ba6d5c867e517ab2e5e2ab 0da4&page=0 9 RAMMANT-PEETERS1995, 256, no.648. 10 PIRZIO BIROLI STEFANELLI 2007; 2012. 11 TASSINARI 2009. 640 THE ALEXANDER MEDALLION OF THE MAS, ANTWERP (BELGIUM) RECONSIDERED so-called Azara-Herm with the portrait of Alexander the Great entered the Louvre in 1803 (Fig. 2a), the manufacture of ‘Porcelaines de Sèvres’, France, shaped a Herm-like bust of Napoleon I in porcelain (Fig. 2b).12 The similarity in rendering late 18th-early 19th c. portraits to resemble antique originals was a mainstream trend as modern artists imitated the original pieces from Antiquity and their patron was inspired by the historical person represented. Fig. 3: The so-called Drusus Maior cameo (IXa 30) in the Kunsthistorisches Museum in Vienna (copyright Kunsthistorisches Museum, Vienna) Discussing the Alexander medallion, Agnès Rammant-Peeters mentions13 the existence of a similar piece in brown glass at the Berlin museum, Antiquarium no.1090, however we could not find any trace of this piece, nor is it known to the specialist in charge, Gertrud Platz-Horster (2012). Therefore, the single cameo that resembles the Antwerp medallion most in size, glass type, technique and high-quality rendering is the so-called Drusus Maior cameo14 in the Kunsthistorisches Museum in Vienna (Fig.3).15 The portrait unfortunately does not represent Alexander the Great, but rather a member of the Julio-Claudian dynasty. At the moment there seems to be no consensus about who is 12 13 14 15 Denon, l’oeil de Napoléon 1999, 196-197, cat.no.191. RAMMANT-PEETERS 1995, 257, no.648 Antikensammlung,IXa 30. We wish to draw the attention on the medallion ‘camée 174’ at the Cabinet des Médailles in Paris (Babelon 1897, 88, no.174; pl.XVII, fig.174; ARVEILLER-DULONG and NENNA 2011, 397, note 6) depicting the frontal face of the Medusa and which is much larger (max.pres. h.:108 mm; max.pres. w.: 115 mm) than the Antwerp and Viena medallions, but made in a similar turquoise blue glass and showing a similar pitted surface. This Medusa medallion is said to come from Rome where it was found somewhere in the second third of the 18th c. and was soon after acquired by the Cabinet des Médailles between 1752 and 1765. 641 represented, but given the fact that the name of the artist “Hrophiloc Diockouri[des]” (= Herophilos, son of Dioskourides) is present on the right lower side below the chin the represented young man is presumably a member of the Julio-Claudian dynasty. Various possible persons have already been suggested, for example Tiberius, Drusus maior, Augustus and Germanicus16, but the person portrayed has side-whiskers, a moustache and some facial hair on the chin (goatee), features not directly linked with early Roman imperial portraits. However, when taking into consideration various cameos at the Kunsthistorischen Museum of Vienna it appears that there exist representations of Caligula or Tiberius and Octavian with side-whiskers, a moustache and a goatee17. Another option is that the represented person is Ptolemy, king of Mauretania. Being the grandson of Marc Antony and Cleopatra, he was regarded the last in line of the Ptolemaic dynasty. As a client king of Rome, he ruled first with his father Juba II from 21 AD and from 23/24 AD as sole ruler. A new portrait type of Ptolemy 16 TERNES 1970; ZWIERLEIN-DIEHL 2008, 134-141. 17 ZWIERLEIN-DIEHL 2008, 142-153, figs. 100; 104-106. AIHV Annales du 21e Congrès, 2018 was described by the Jesuit Alexander Wiltheim in 1694.20 According to archaeological surveys the piece might have been found within the abbey area because the earliest structures are the 7th c. Benedictine monastery established in the time of Willibrordus that had been built over by the 10th c. church dedicated to SS. Peter and Paul.21 These early medieval structures were built on a late Roman castellum with evidence of an early Roman vicus. A well of 14 m deep within the castellum boundaries is said to have yielded various objects dating from the Roman period including a gold-framed cameo depicting “Tiberius”, giving the name of the artist: H(e)rophilos, son of Dioskourides. Fig. 4: Cameo with the portrait of Augustus in a late medieval frame at the Bibliothèque nationale de France (BnF 234) (copyright Bibliothèque nationale de France) showing him as a bearded young man with unruly hair and a diadem is assumed to be introduced in relation to his accession to the throne of Mauretania.18 It appears that these characteristic facial hair features can be directly linked with mourning young male elite during the second half of the 1st c. BC and the first half of the 1st c. AD and is particularly illustrative with members of the Julio-Claudian dynasty. The Vienna piece entered the collections at the end of the 18th c. when the Echternach abbey presented it to the Habsburg emperor in 1798.19 There it was known that the piece formed part of the treasury collections of the abbey since at least the 17th c., as the cameo 18 SMITH, op. cit., cat. no. 180, pl. 69,3-4, and Sotheby’s, New York, December 10th, 1999, no. 284. 19 ZWIERLEIN-DIEHL 2008, 134-141; 289-294. No other clearly related cameo or medallion by Herophilos is known, but the Bibliothèque nationale de France in Paris possesses a fascinating cameo (BnF 234) representing the emperor Augustus which is most likely from the hand of his father Dioskourides.22 Dioskourides was the famous Roman gem-engraver active in Rome at the time of Augustus, who according to Pliny the Elder (NH XXXIII.153; NH XXXVII.8) and Suetonius (De Vita Caesarum, Augustus, 50), made ‘an excellent rendering’ of the emperor Augustus on the emperor’s personal seal, which remained in use as a state seal by successive emperors according to Dio Cassius (History of Rome, 51.3). Here again, likewise the Alexander medallion, the portrait of Augustus has a prominent chin and the hooked nasal bridge (Fig. 4). It is tempting to date the Alexander medallion as a late 1st c. BC-early 1st c. AD production seeing that Dioskourides and Herophilos lived in the late 1st c. BC-early 1st c. AD; the size, 20 WITHEMIUS 1694, in repro Neyen 1842, 289-294. 21 TERNES 1970. 22 BABELON 1897, 107-108, no.234; VOLLENWEIDER and AVISSEAU-BROUSTET 2003, 49-51, no.52. 642 THE ALEXANDER MEDALLION OF THE MAS, ANTWERP (BELGIUM) RECONSIDERED style and glass type of the Alexander medallion and the Vienna medallion are similar, as are the rendering of emperor Augustus and Alexander the Great. Therefore, dating the Alexander medallion to the early Roman imperial period would not be strange particularly when considering the story by Suetonius that Augustus had his first seal with the figure of a sphinx replaced by one with the head of Alexander the Great. Hence, the Vienna cameo and the Augustus cameo are helpful in dating the Alexander medallion, even though the stylistic and archival work leave us with incomplete answers. The question marks about the authenticity and origin of this fascinating object require stronger evidence to date the medallion more accurately, something that is resolved by defining the composition of the glass. AD.25 The pXRF results however already exclude an early Hellenistic production, making it clearly not contemporaneous to Alexander the Great and his near successors, e.g. Ptolemy I Soter or Lysimachos, nor can it be a 19th c. production due to the presence of lead and tin as opacifying agent. To be more precise regarding the production date of the medallion, we decided to conduct high quality quantitative measurement by means of LA-ICP-MS at the Centre Ernest Babelon (CNRS-IRAMAT) in Orléans. The analysis has been generously executed by Bernard Gratuze. Based on the minor and trace elements a more refined dating can be proposed (Table 1). The LA-ICPMS indicated very low levels of alumina (Al2O3) and lime (CaO) as well as extremely high levels of tin oxide excluding a late Hellenistic-early Roman imperial period proChemical analyses duction date because much lower amounts Due to a reassessment in 1994-95 in of tin oxide were used as an opacifying agent view of the temporary exhibition “Egypte in the 2nd-1st c. BC.26 onomwonden” (transl. ‘Egypt avowedly’), The ‘high’ levels of arsenic (As), 198 the material of the medallion was for the first time described as glass23 instead of the ppm, and bismuth (Bi), 177 ppm, within the usually adopted “pâte d’émail”.24 Hence, glass metal of the Alexander medallion show chemical analyses were necessary to define a correlation with the levels of cobalt (Co), 129 ppm, concur the material type to acquire an answer in the 196 ppm, and nickel (Ni), 27 authenticity debate. Initially, a non-destruc- with Group 4 (Table 1). This well-defined with the cobalt ore distive qualitative test by means of a pXRF was relationship is linked th carried out at the MAS, Antwerp, Belgium, covered in the 13 c. in the Schneeberg-Erzemaking clear that the medallion is made of a gebirge mine district in Germany which was generally used in glass workshops throughsilica-soda glass with high amounts of lead out Europe between the 15th c. and the 18th and tin. Due to a lack of comparative materic.28 These post-medieval white, turquoise al there was no decisive answer on the dating and blue opaque glasses share the same base of the medallion as lead-tin opacified glasses glass made of high lead (Pb) and tin (Sn), were produced from the late Hellenistic period (2nd-1st c. BC) onwards and particularly 25 TITE et al. 2008. from the late Roman period up to the 18th c. 26 TITE et al. 2008. 27 GRATUZE et al. 1992, 106; 1996, 80-81, tab.1; WYPYSKI 2000, 151. 28 GRATUZE et al. 1992, 106; 1996, 80-81, tab.1; DUSSUBIEUX 2009, 100. 23 RAMMANT-PEETERS 1995, 256-257, no.648. 24 ALLEMANT 1878, 103, no.743. 643 AIHV Annales du 21e Congrès, 2018 Table 1: A selection of major, minor and trace elements by LA-ICP-MS at the Centre Ernest Babelon (CNRS-IRAMAT) in Orléans correspondingly c.18% and c.35%, with levels of soda (Na2O) of around 10%, and of silica (SiO2) ranging near 35%, with everything else lower than 1%,29 a composition that is again similar to the glass of the medallion. The presence of the Erzgebirge cobalt ore hints at a production that is earlier than 19th c. manufacture. Moreover, the Pb-levels of 19th c. white opaque enamels exceed 30% going up to 50-60% with a ratio PbO/ SnO2 exceeding 2:1 (e.g. Rohrs & Stege 2004), whereas the Alexander medallion has a Pb-level of c.18% with a ratio PbO/SnO2 of 1:1 (Table 1). Additionally, the 18th c. can be excluded as well due to the nearly total absence of As, as an opacifying agent, and the use of Sn instead as lead arsenate white was introduced in the 18th c. to replace the 16th-17th c. tradition of using lead stannate (Pb2SnO4) as an opacifying agent.30 Leadtin opacified soda glass enamels were introduced from the late 12th c. onwards, but up to the 15th c. amounts of tin remained relatively small with an excess of lead-to-tin ratio. Instead, the enamels from the 15th c. onwards have been found to contain much higher percentages of tin, many more than 20%, usually with an approximate 1-to-1 ratio of lead oxide to tin (Wypyski & Richter 1997, 54, table 2). A 15th-17th c. date of the medallion is therefore proposed, not only because the Alexander medallion has Pb-Sn levels corresponding to the white enamel of 29 DUSSUBIEUX 2009, 100. 30 TITE et al. 2008. the 16th c. George watch from the Metropolitan Museum of Arts, New York, but also the relatively low levels of alumina, magnesium, and lime.31 We therefore are inclined to consider that the Alexander medallion is a 15th-17th c. enamel glass following the enamel tradition of Limoges. A number of sampled objects that have been analysed show a similar composition, for instance: (1) the opaque white glass of objects nos. 9, 11, 14 and 21 in Wypyski et al. 1997; (2) the white sample FRO027 in Dussubieux 2009; (3) the opaque glass Group A3 in Van Der Linden et al. 2010. An additional outcome from the detailed chemical analysis by means of LA-ICP-MS is that the medallion, first thought erroneously to have been ‘émail’, ‘pâte d’émail’ or ‘émailpaté’ (sic) instead of glass, is to be considered a “lead stannate enamel-glass” due to the low level of silica and the high levels of lead and tin. CONCLUSION Reviewing all evidence obtained from art historical and archival research, and especially the data provided from chemical analysis, the authenticity debate becomes more sharply defined. Based on the compositional specificity of the glass metal, the medallion cannot be assumed to be a simple 18th-19th c. product of historicism nor a forgery. Conversely, the medallion is not contempora31 WYPYSKI 2000, 151. 644 THE ALEXANDER MEDALLION OF THE MAS, ANTWERP (BELGIUM) RECONSIDERED thedral Treasury or the cameo representing Valeria Messalina, wife of Claudius which is inserted in a 17th c. enamelled golden frame. At least, we can say that the interest in collecting ancient gemstones not only caused an increased search for Greek and Roman engraved gems and cameos, but also inspired the art of gem cutting among contemporary artists. Consequently, it cannot be ruled out that a mould was made on the basis of an authentic cameo from Antiquity in order to produce new gemstones. In particular, from the beginning of the 15th c. Greek and Roman engraved gems as well as coins became preferred collectors’ items when classical antiquity regained interest and admiration by Italian humanists, but also for personal political interest of the new enlightened elite like the Gonzaga, the Grimani, the Medici and in particular Cosimo I de Medici, who was a great admirer of Alexander the Great. Considering the Alexander medallion Could he be the entitled client who ordered is a 15th-17th c. enamel glass following the the making of the Antwerp Alexander meenamel tradition of Limoges, the new issues dallion? And if so, could it be that the conarising from this reassessment are: temporaneous Benvenuto Cellini, a talented goldsmith, sculptor, draftsman, soldier, mu• When exactly was the medallion made? sician, artist and poet conceived the mould • Where was the medallion made? to cast the Antwerp Alexander medallion? th • Who ordered the manufacturing of the Other possible makers are the 16 c. gem engravers such as Valerio Belli, Giovanni piece and for what purpose? Bernardi da Castelbolognese and Matteo del • Who conceived the mould to cast the meNassaro for whom it is known their works dallion? were worth considerable sums of money. That ancient gems, cameos and medalThis first impression on the fascinating lions in all sorts of (semi-)precious stones investigation makes clear that a continued and glass were common in the early modern examination is needed to include additionperiod can be supported by a good number al information from corresponding pieces of antique cameos that circulated throughout in opaque turquoise blue glass such as the the medieval period and the renaissance.32 so-called Drusus medallion at the KunsthisWell-known is the Augustus cameo inserted torisches Museum in Vienna and the Meduin the Cross of Lothair at the Aachen Ca- sa medallion at the Cabinet des Médailles in neous to Alexander the Great and his direct successors either, rejecting an (early) Hellenistic date. Furthermore, the distinct chemical composition also excludes the Roman imperial period, thus rejecting the piece as an authentic product from classical antiquity. However, considering the high quality of the rendering and the high resemblance of the nose, chin, cheek, eyes and hair curls to portraits of the Julio-Claudian family, the mould reaches the same quality as the Hierophilos cameos. Based on the chemical composition the Alexander medallion must have been produced somewhere in the 15th-17th c. AD, though it is not excluded that an authentic early Roman imperial mould was applied in the early modern period to cast a new cameo in opaque turquoise blue glass, or a mould was produced from a then still preserved authentic ancient cameo. Paris. 32 DAMEN 2000. 645 AIHV Annales du 21e Congrès, 2018 ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS We are very grateful to Bart Huysmans and Michel Wuyts, both photographers of the City of Antwerp, Museums, Collection Policy, Conservation and Management, for the high-quality images. Furthermore, we wish to thank the Kunsthistorisches Museum of Vienna for granting us permission to publish high-definition pictures of their glass medallion. We also would like to thank Mathilde Patin for her assistance with the pXRF measurements and say a special word of gratitude towards Bernard Gratuze of CNRS-Centre Ernest Babelon (CEB)IRAMAT in Orléans, France who performed the accurate LA-ICPMS analysis. REFERENCES Denon, l’oeil de Napoléon (exhibition catalogue 1999). Paris. Egypte onomwonden: Egyptische oudheden van het Museum Vleeshuis (exhibition catalogue 1995). Antwerp. ALLEMANT, Eugène, 1878. Collection d’antiquités égyptiennes. Description historique et religieuse des monuments découvertes sur les lieux par l’auteur. London. ARVEILLER-DULONG, Véronique and NENNA, Marie-Dominique, 2011. Les verres antiques du Musée du Louvre III, Parures, instruments et éléments d’incrustation. Paris. BABELON, Ernest, 1897. Catalogue des camées antiques et modernes de la Bibliothèque nationale. Paris. DAMEN, Giada, 2000. “Antique Engraved Gems and Renaissance Collectors” in Heilbrunn Timeline of Art History. New York. http://www.metmuseum.org/toah/hd/gems/hd_ gems.htm (March 2013)DE WIT, Constant, 1959. Catalogus Vleeshuis – VIII, Egypte. Antwerp. DE WIT, Constant, 1960. La collection E. Allemant, à Anvers. Bulletin des Musées Royaux d’Art et d’Histoire 4e Série, 32e Année, 71–74. DUSSUBIEUX, Laure, 2009. Chemical Investigation of Some 17th-Century French Glass Personal Ornaments. Journal of Glass Studies 51, 95–110. GENARD, Pieter, 1894. Musée d’antiquités d’Anvers. Catalogue de la collection d’antiquités égyptiennes, suivie de la liste des objets des temps préhistoriques trouvés par MM. Les ingénieurs Henri et Louis Siret dans le SudEst de l’Espagne. Antwerp. GRATUZE, Bernard, SOULIER, Isabelle, BLET-LEMARQUAND, Maryse and VALLAURI Lucy, 1996. De l’origine du cobalt : du verre à la céramique. Revue d’Archéométrie 20, 77–94. GRATUZE, Bernard, SOULIER, Isabelle, BARRANDON, Jean-Noël and FOY, Danièle, 1992. De l’origine du cobalt dans les verres, Revue d’Archéométrie, 16, 97–108. 646 THE ALEXANDER MEDALLION OF THE MAS, ANTWERP (BELGIUM) RECONSIDERED HOLT, Frank L., 2014. Alexander the Great and the mystery of the elephant medallions. Berkeley/Los Angeles/London. HOLT, Frank L., 2011. ‘Authenticity’. In: HOLT, Frank L. and BOPEARACHCHI, Osmund (eds.) The Alexander Medallion. Exploring the origins of a unique artefact. Rouqueyroux, 13–31. KOTTARIDI, Angeliki, 2011. ‘The Legend of Macedon: a Hellenic kingdom in the age of democracy’. In: KOTTARIDI, Angeliki and WALKER, Susan (eds.) Heracles to Alexander the Great. Treasures from the Royal Capital of Macedon, a Hellenic Kingdom in the Age of Democracy. Oxford, 1–24. LAPATHIN, Kenneth, 2015. Luxus. The Sumptuous Arts of Greece and Rome. Los Angeles. PIRZIO BIROLI STEFANELLI, Lucia, 2012. La collezione Paoletti. Stampi in vetro per impronte di intagli e cammei II. Rome. PIRZIO BIROLI STEFANELLI, Lucia, 2007. La collezione Paoletti. Stampi in vetro per impronte di intagli e cammei I. Rome. PLANTZOS, Dimitris, 2002. Alexander of Macedon on a silver intaglio. Antike Kunst 45, 71–79. PLATZ-HORSTER, Gertrud, 2012. Erhabene Bilder. Die Kameen in der Antikensammlung Berlin. Wiesbaden. RAMMANT-PEETERS, Agnès, 1995. ‘648. Glasmedaillon met portret van Alexander De Grote’. In: Egypte onomwonden. Egyptische oudheden van het museum Vleeshuis. Leuven, 256–257. RICHTER, Gisela M.A., 2006 (1920). Catalogue of Engraved Gems of the Classical Style: Greek Etruscan, and Roman. Rome. ROHRS, Stefan and STEGE, Heike, 2004. Analysis of Limoges painted enamels from the 16th to 19th centuries by using a portable micro x-ray fluorescence spectrometer. X-Ray Spectrometry 33, 396–401. TASSINARI, Gabriella, 2009. Iconografie “antiche” nella collezione di calchi e cammei di A. Berini ai Civici Musei di Storia ed Arte di Trieste. LANX, Rivista della Scuola di Specializzazione in Archeologia - Università degli Studi di Milano 2, 78–115. TERNES, Charles-Marie, 1974. Das römische Luxemburg. Zurich. TERNES, Charles-Marie, 1970. Der Herophilos-kameo aus Echternach. Hémecht 22 (2), 225–226. TITE, Michael, PRADELL, Trinitat and SHORTLAND, Andrew, 2008. Discovery, production and use of tin-based opacifiers in glasses, enamels and glazes from the late Iron Age onwards: A reassessment. Archaeometry 50 (1), 67–84. 647 AIHV Annales du 21e Congrès, 2018 VAN DER LINDEN, Veerle, SCHALM, Olivier, HOUBRAKEN, Jos, THOMAS, Mienke, MEESDOM, Eva, DEVOS, Annemie, VANDOOREN, Rita, NIEUWDORP, Hans, JANSSEN, Elsje and JANSSENS, Koen, 2010. Chemical analysis of 16th to 19th century Limoges School “Painted enamel” objects in three museums of the low countries. X-Ray Spectrometry 39(2), 112– 121. VANLATHEM, Marie-Paule, 1983. De Egyptische verzameling E. Allemant in het Vleeshuis te Antwerpen. Museumleven Jaarboek van de Vlaamse Museumvereniging 11, 1983, 82–97. VOLLENWEIDER, Marie-Louise and AVISSEAU-BROUSTET, Mathilde, 2003. Camées et intailles, II, Les portraits romains du Cabinet des Médailles. Paris. WARMENBOL, Eugène, DE VOS, Annemie and COSYNS, Peter, 2017. ‘The glass collections in the ‘Museum aan de Stroom’ (MAS), Antwerp (Belgium)’. In: Annales du 20e Congrès International de l’AIHV, Fribourg 7-11 September 2015. Fribourg, 265–270. WILTHEIM (Wilthemius), Alexander, 1694 (repro 1842). Luciliburgensia sive Luxemburgum Romanum: Opus posthumum ab Aug (volume 1). WYPYSKI, Mark T., 2000. Technical Appendix: Compositions of Enamels on the George Watch. Metropolitan Museum Journal 35, 7; 150–152. WYPYSKI, Mark T. and RICHTER, Rainer W., 1997. Preliminary compositional study of 14th and 15th c. European enamels/Etude analytique préliminaire d ‘émaux européens des XIVe et XVe siècles. Techné: Research in Philosophy and Technology 6, 48–57. ZWIERLEIN-DIEHL, Erika, 2008. Magie der Steine, Die antiken Prunkkameen im Kunsthistorischen Museum, Vienna. PETER COSYNS Vrije Universiteit Brussel (VUB) Department of History, Archaeology, Art Sciences and Philosophy (HARP-SKAR) Pleinlaan 2 1050 Brussels, Belgium [email protected] ANDREA CEGLIA Vrije Universiteit Brussel (VUB) Brussels Photonics (B-PHOT) Department of Applied Physics (TONA) Pleinlaan 2 1050 Brussels, Belgium [email protected] ANNEMIE DE VOS MAS | Vleeshuismuseum Vleeshouwersstraat 38/40, 2000 Antwerp, Belgium [email protected] EUGÈNE WARMENBOL Université Libre de Bruxelles Faculty of Philosophy and Social Sciences Department of History, Arts and Archeology (HAA) Campus du Solbosch - CP 133/01 Avenue FD Roosevelt, 50 1050 Brussels, Belgium [email protected] 648