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AVILA - A STUNNING MEDIEVAL TOWN IN CENTRAL SPAIN The historic town of Avila is located on the Rio Adaja to the north of Madrid in central Spain. It is set on a high plain with the peaks of the Sierra de Gredos as a backdrop. Avila’s long history begins with an old Celt-iberian settlement of the Vettones around the year 700 BC. When the Romans arrived in the 3rd century BC, the first wall was built and Avila became an important defensive location. In medieval times Avila lay within the no-man’s zone between the Muslim south and Christian controlled north and experienced several centuries of decline. The city was repopulated and rebuilt in the 11th century after being reconquered by the north. According to tradition, Raimundo de Borgona, son-in-law of King Alfonso VI, was in charge of supervising the construction of the walls on the ruins of the old Roman fortress. The city wall is one of the best preserved in Europe. Its perimeter is more than two km, with about 2,500 battlements, 88 towers, 6 main doors and 3 secondary entrances. The wall defended the town and controlled the entrance of provisions and merchandise, and also isolated the city, guarding it against the potential outbreak of a plague or epidemic. It is shaped like an irregular rectangle, with crenelated towers and round turrets. One of the most spectacular gates is Puerta del Alcazar (Gate of the Fortress). The Los Leales Gate, one of the main entrances to the old town, leads straight to the cathedral. This looks like a fortress and was built between the 12th and 14th centuries. Its apse, known as "cimorro", is part of the wall and is the largest defensive turret on the bastion. Construction was originally begun in the Romanesque style, built of red and white mottled stone, but the project was subsequently taken over by the master architect Fruchel, who built one of the first Gothic cathedrals in Spain – the new additions were made with pure white stone. The Gothic sections are much more spacious. There are superimposed Gothic and Baroque elements on the façade of the cathedral, and it has two doors: the main door, flanked by two towers –one unfinished– which give it an appearance of a church-fortification, and the door of the Apostles at one side. It is laid out in the shape of a Latin cross. The choir and the cloister were added later in the Renaissance (16th Century). The main chapel has a magnificent altarpiece by Vasco de la Zarza and paintings by Berruguete and Juan de Borgona. The stained-glass windows date from the 15th century. The Basilica of San Vicente, built outside the walls of the town, was founded in the 11th Century but not completed till the 12th century. It is dedicated to San Vicente and his sisters Cristeta and Sabina and constructed next to the supposed place in which three saints were martyred in the times of Diocletian. This Basilica is considered the most beautiful example of the Romanesque style in the city, although it also has other architectural elements that were added later on. The exterior of the building is dominated by three magnificent apses, the west doorway, also known as the Portico de la Gloria doorway of Avila, and the south façade. Near the altar is the tomb of the three martyrs, an important proto-Gothic funeral monument, attributed to the master architect Fruchel. The interior has vaults with ogives on a Romanesque structure. A crypt is dedicated to the Virgen de la Soterrana. The Church of San Pedro, built in the 12th-13th centuries, is also Romanesque. This construction is very sober. A large Cistercian rose window over its doorway and the three apses are the most important elements outside. Inside the ornamentation contrasts with the interesting group of paintings and altarpieces it holds. The church has three naves. The exterior is also marked by a great square tower, from the same period. Within the city walls, there are medieval areas, like the Plaza de los Davila, with more than twelve Renaissance noble houses, including the mansion of Los Velada, the palace of Los Valderrabano and of Nunez Vela. But the most surprising construction in the area is Los Davila Palace. It is a solid fortress made up of four houses and the oldest was built in the 13th century. The group of buildings stands out because of its battlements and its Renaissance window. The Monastery of Santo Tomas used to be the traditional summer residence of the Spanish monarchs and was finished in 1493, using the Isabelline Gothic style during the reign of the Catholic Monarchs Isabella and Ferdinand. The site is dominated by a monumental church with a single nave and cross vaults, as well as several side chapels. In the centre of the transept there is a tomb of the Infante don Juan son of the Monarchs, sculpted in marble by Domenico Fancelli. A magnificent altarpiece by Berruguete and an elevated choir also stand out. The convent area is organised round three cloister - Noviciado, Silencio and de los Reyes - which are very richly decorated. The old royal quarters today hold the Oriental Museum which displays a collection of works from the Far East. I will be leading our popular tour of Roman and Moorish Spain (Andalusia) in May this year and this includes a day exploring the medieval heart of Avila: SOUTHERN SPAIN: FROM THE ROMANS TO THE MOORS A 3-week tour exploring ancient Phoenician, Roman and Moorish Spain led by Dr Michael Birrell Includes: Madrid, Segovia, Avila, Toledo, Merida, Italica, Seville, Ronda, Cordoba, Granada, Alhambra 1st - 22nd May 2017 A$7400.00 per person twin share (airfares extra) Itinerary: www.bcarchaeology.com/ancient_spain.html Contact me: mbirrell@tpg.com.au or 0405 492946
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PERSEPOLIS - THE ROYAL CITY OF DARIUS Persepolis is located in the southwest Iranian province of Fars, on the eastern edge of the broad plain called Marv Dasht. The Achaemenid Persian ruler Darius I the Great (522-486 B.C.) elected to build a new dynastic seat here to replace the prior capital, Pasargadae, which is located 40 km to the north. The site includes a lofty stone terrace close to 450 m long and 300 m wide; the substantial remains of a series of relief-decorated palatial buildings; a fortified hill directly to the east; and a series of lesser representational buildings on the adjacent plain. Four trilingual cuneiform inscriptions (in Old Persian, Elamite, and Babylonian) on the gate of Persepolis combine with other textual evidence to affirm that Darius's extensive palace fortress was given the same name, Parsa, the same as the surrounding homeland of the Persians. The Greeks called it Persepolis. Formal excavations were slow to begin. It was only in 1924 that the Iranian government invited Ernst Herzfeld, the foremost Iranologist of the day, to prepare a detailed plan of Persepolis, together with an estimate of what it would cost to clear the site. Then the Oriental Institute of the University of Chicago was invited to sponsor the work and Herzfeld was chosen to head the expedition. Following four campaigns, from 1931 to 1934 (during which the famed reliefs on the east side of the apadana were uncovered), the direction of the work passed to Erich F. Schmidt, who continued to excavate from 1935 to 1939. It was Schmidt, moreover, who published the results of the Oriental Institute's all-important excavations in a comprehensive three-volume final report. Subsequent excavations, initially conducted by Andre Godard, M. T. Mostafavi, and Ali Sami on behalf of the Iranian Archaeological Service, did much to reveal the plan of the few remaining unexamined areas of the site. While work on the massive retaining wall of the partly rubble-filled terrace and on the magnificent stairway in the northwest corner of the site is likely to have begun at least as early as 515 B.C., a string of building inscriptions of Darius himself, his son Xerxes (486-465 B.C.), and his grandson Artaxerxes (465-425 B.C.) helps to document a subsequent, prolonged sequence of construction on the surface of the terrace from about 500 B.C. down to about 440 B.C.. Such inscriptions not only reflect the measured pace that was demanded by the uncompromising standards of Achaemenid construction, but they also do much to illustrate the sense of dynastic continuity that apparently inspired the completion of much of an original masterplan. In a process that was presumably intended to underscore the exalted rank of the Persian king, all visitors to Achaemenid Persepolis were obliged to ascend the 14-meter-high double-return stairway that led to the single formal entrance to the terrace: the freestanding Gate of All Lands. This formidable square structure was marked by a single soaring hall with four stone columns and three doorways. In keeping with Assyrian-inspired colossi, two massive stone bulls guarded the outer doorway and two winged human-headed bulls guarded the opposite, inner doorway. Trilingual inscriptions indicate that Xerxes erected, or at least completed, this aptly named structure. The hub of all else on the terrace was the imposing audience hall, or apadana, a building that was founded by Darius and completed by Xerxes and which stood on a separate podium 2.6o m high. Each side of this square edifice was 110 m long. Six rows of six columns (each with a square base, a fluted shaft, and a composite capital that was crowned by addorsed bull protomes) supported the cedar beams of the main hall, a vast room that stood more than 19 m high and measured 60.50 m on each side. The hall's 5-meter-thick mud-brick walls were flanked by four corner towers and by deep recesses between the towers. To the north, east, and west these recesses took the form of tall porticoes, each marked by two rows of six stone columns set on circular, bell-shaped bases. While the west portico provided a focal point from which the monarch could review parades on the plain below, the remaining two porticoes were each approached by monumental stairways composed of four symmetrically arranged flights of steps. Effectively carved at eye level, where all who sought an audience could not fail to observe them, the facades of these matching stairways still boast a series of reliefs that rightly remain among the most celebrated expressions of Achaemenid art. Like the apadana, Darius's palace stood on its own separate podium near the western edge of the terrace. An archetype for later royal residences, the building was distinguished by a single entrance portico flanked by guardrooms, a hypostyle central hall, and a series of symmetrically planned, adjoining suites. The extant stone elements of this compact structure include highly polished door, window, and niche frames (each capped by fluted, egyptianized cornices), low wall socles, and a series of elegant doorway reliefs. The latter are especially remarkable for those examples in which Darius chose to introduce a novel type of apotropaic relief: the Persian "royal hero" shown in the act of vanquishing one or another real or fabulous beast in defense of not only the actual residence of the ruler, but also the realm as a whole. Darius also founded, but did not himself complete, a three-doored tripylon. This monumental, enigmatic structure appears to have served as the main link between the open courts and public buildings in the northern portion of the site and the more southerly areas of the terrace that largely came to be given over to the private palaces of Darius's successors. He also laid out the first stage of the treasury, an eventually much altered and expanded structure that served as one of the Achaemenid Empire's richest storehouses (as well as one of the more prolific sources of metal objects, administrative tablets, seal impressions, and other notable finds recovered during Schmidt's excavations). After 486 B.C., this latter structure came to be flanked on the west by the so-called Harem of Xerxes and, closer to the southwest corner of the terrace, by Xerxes' palace. In architectural terms, however, the most impressive of all the later buildings at Persepolis consists of the so-called throne hall (or Hall of One Hundred Columns), which was most probably begun by Xerxes and completed by Artaxerxes. Although the square hall of this structure was not given the towering height of the main hall of the apadana, its ground area was substantially larger, with each side measuring 68.50 m. Subsequent construction at Persepolis was mainly confined to the southeast corner of the terrace and to the creation of a series of private palaces of lesser note. A well documented exception concerns the addition of a double staircase on the south side of Darius's palace. There an Old Persian inscription proclaims the authorship of Artaxerxes III (359-338 B.C.) and an analysis of the associated reliefs shows them to be of the same late date. Elsewhere, both Artaxerxes II (404-359 B.C.) and Artaxerxes III chose to locate their sizable rock-cut tombs on the western slope of the fortified hill that overlooks the terrace. With the completion of these last two major monuments, however, a singular record of sustained architectural and artistic accomplishment came to an effective close only a handful of years before the fateful destruction of the site by Alexander of Macedonia. B.C. Archaeology is leading a tour of ancient Iran which includes an extended visit to Persepolis to explore its many sculptural reliefs - this tour is almost full so if you are interested let me know very soon: ANCIENT IRAN: HISTORY & ARCHAEOLOGY A 3-week tour of Iran exploring ancient and medieval sites led by Dr Michael Birrell Includes: Tehran, Ecbatana, Bisotun, Susa, Shiraz, Persepolis, Pasargadae, Yazd, Isfahan, Qom 9th - 30th October 2017 A$7400.00 per person twin share (airfares extra) Itinerary: www.bcarchaeology.com/ancient_iran.html Contact me: mbirrell@tpg.com.au or 0405 492946
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BAELO CLAUDIA - ROMAN SITE IN SOUTHERN SPAIN Baelo Claudia is a small Roman settlement on the Atlantic coast of Andalusia (southern Spain). There are only a few ancient textual sources about the city. The most detailed source is Strabo’s Geography III, 1, 8. These states that the port of Baelo was important because it united the Peninsula with Tangier (ancient Tingis) in North Africa. This close association with North Africa is suggested in the archaeological record by the fact that opus africanum ashlar blocks, favoured by the Phoenicians, were used in construction at the site, and by the presence of large quantities of North African ceramic material. Strabo states that Baelo was an emporium, a market place for commerce, a term normally only used of significant trade centres. He also states that the industrial activity of fish salting took place here. Pliny also describes Baelo as a port for loading goods destined for Tangier. According to the oldest archaeological material found at the site, Baelo was founded in the 2nd Century BC. This early material consists of coins which were minted at Baelo sometime in the late 2nd Century through to the early 1st Century BC. The name of the city is written in Latin and Punic – the Punic form seems to read Byl’nn which might be rendered Bailonen. Coins were issued at Baelo from 101 to 32 BC. Baelo was well located – it had maritime connections with Tingis, the capital of Mauritania Tingitana and with the other cities developing on the south coast, particularly Cadiz and Carteia. From the end of the 2nd Century BC the area of Baelo saw the development of fish salting industries mainly for the production of garum sauce. The first city walls of Baelo were erected in the time of Augustus but these were completely rebuilt during the period of Claudius. The city reached its apogee in the period from Claudius to Hadrian (AD 41-140). The city became a municipium (which probably gave the citizens Roman rights or just Latin rights) and the majority of monuments date from this period. In the reign of Claudius, the city acquires the attribute of ‘Claudia’ to indicate its raised status. Under the Flavians (late 1st Century AD) the construction of the Forum is completed with the building of the markets in the SE corner. The layout of the Forum area is based on the classic designs of Roman urbanism and is one of the best preserved examples in Spain. Baelo prospered in the 2nd Century AD – in the high Imperial period there are significant amounts of high quality pottery from very diverse regions of the Mediterranean as well as coins from different mints in Hispania. The economic prosperity of the city of Baelo appears to have declined in the late 2nd Century. Major construction activity in the city comes to an end – the salting factories and the bath complex seem to be the last things being constructed. An economic recession occurred in the late 2nd Century and lasted well into the 3rd Century. Reasons for this decline have been suggested: earthquake activity, decrease in fish catches, decline in markets as the empire went into decline = there is a general economic crisis in the 3rd Century. There is evidence that the city also suffered an earthquake at the beginning of the 3rd Century AD. The citizens stayed on to keep the industries going but they did not rebuild ruined structures – the basilica seems to have fallen down. There is some renewed industrial action in the 3rd and 4th Centuries but the city has by this time largely abandoned the canons of a classical city. The macellum was being used as rubbish dumps. The industrial activity continued into the 5th Century AD and that there is some simple building in the area occupied by the city – but by this point the town has disappeared and been replaced by a village of fishermen. The ancient city was identified with various ruins in the 17th Century but it is not until 1719 that Baelo Claudia was correctly identified with the ruins located at Bolonia – this was by an Englishman J. Conduitt. The first investigation does not take place till 1907 when the site received a basic archaeological survey by the Belgian Jules Furgus. The first true investigation took place between 1917 and 1921 by Pierre Paris and this work was later published between 1923-6. The site then passed into obscurity. It was not till 1964 that a geophysical survey was undertaken to identify the limits of the city and the nature of the ruins. Excavations recommenced in 1966 and have continued to the present. This has been undertaken by the French Institute of Spanish Studies, known as the Case de Velazquez. B.C. Archaeology Travel is running a tour of Southern Spain in May which includes a visit to the beautiful seaside Roman town of Baelo Claudia: SOUTHERN SPAIN: FROM THE ROMANS TO THE MOORS A 3-week tour exploring ancient Phoenician, Roman and Moorish Spain led by Dr Michael Birrell Includes: Madrid, Segovia, Avila, Toledo, Merida, Italica, Seville, Ronda, Cordoba, Granada, Alhambra 1st - 22nd May 2017 A$7400.00 per person twin share (airfares extra) Itinerary: www.bcarchaeology.com/ancient_spain.html Contact me: mbirrell@tpg.com.au or 0405 492946
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LECTURE AT THE POWERHOUSE MUSEUM IN SYDNEY Hi everyone - this is Michael Birrell, the owner/manager of B.C. Archaeology Travel. I'm an archaeologist with 15 years experience of digging in Egypt and 20 years experience of leading tours to the ancient Near East and Mediterranean. I'm giving the following lecture at the Powerhouse Museum at Darling Harbour in Sydney as part of the British Museum Egyptian Mummies: Exploring Ancient Lives exhibition: Ancient ‘Selfies’: The Remarkable Hawara Mummy Portraits Roman era mummies from Egypt often had painted portraits of the dead attached within the mummy wrappings. The current British Museum exhibition in Sydney contains three examples of these stunning portraits but hundreds are known from Museum collections including these examples which I photographed recently in the Cairo Museum. I will discusses these beautiful portraits and how they show the dead as they were in life, providing a wealth of information about status, clothing and personality. The lecture is free but you need to buy a ticket to the Exhibition: Wednesday 18 January 2017 2-3pm. For more details see the Museum website: maas.museum/event/egyptian-mummies-expert-floor-talks/ Alternatively, why not come to Egypt with me in November and see these stunning Roman portraits for yourself: ANCIENT EGYPT: A THOUSAND MILES UP THE NILE A 2-week tour exploring Egypt from Cairo to Abu Simbel led by Dr Michael Birrell Includes: Giza, Cairo Museum, Dahshur, Luxor, Edfu, 3 night Nile cruise Luxor to Aswan, Abu Simbel 13th - 28th November 2017 A$4800.00 per person twin share (airfares extra) Itinerary: www.bcarchaeology.com/upcoming_tours_egypt.html Contact me: mbirrell@tpg.com.au or 0405 492946
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LUXOR - THE TOMBS OF THE NOBLES The state officials who lived and worked at the city of Thebes (modern Luxor in southern Egypt) were buried in a number of cemeteries on the west bank of the Nile. The hills of Dra Abu-l-Naga, Asasif, el-Khukhah, Sheikh Abd el-Gurnah, Gurnet Murai and Deir el-Medina contain about 400 decorated tombs from the 6th Dynasty through to Graeco-Roman times, but the majority of them date to the New Kingdom (1550-1069 BC). Early tombs were placed high up to provide an imposing site – prominent are the so-called saff-tombs with porticos, mainly dating from the Middle Kingdom. As the quality of the stone improves as one proceeds lower, the more important officials were usually buried lower up the slope. The typical tomb consists of two separate parts: a rock-cut mortuary chapel and a subterranean burial chamber. The chapel reproduces the elements of a New Kingdom house and often included a rock cut court at the front off which there is a central door giving access to the chapel. Typically the chapel has a T-shape which includes a transverse hall (corresponding to the broad hall or reception area of a private house) and a long hall (which appears to correspond to the private apartments in a domestic house). The chapel was designed to be entered by the relatives and friends of the tombs owner so that they could leave offerings on his behalf. During the 18th Dynasty and early Ramesside Period, the transverse hall was often decorated with scenes of daily life and the nobleman attending the king under whom he held office. A particularly common theme was to show the tomb owner in the company of his friends and family enjoying an eternal picnic, often attended to by his eldest son who wears a leopard skin and performs the role of the sem-priest. The ends of the hall may contain rock cut statues of the tombs owner and his wife, a focus for offerings, and may also include a painted version of a ‘false-door’, a gateway to the realm of the dead. From the transverse hall there is usually a narrow corridor which leads into the mountain (the long hall). At the far end there is often a small chapel or shrine where offerings were made and the funerary rites performed. The walls of the long hall were most often decorated with religious scenes and the funerary rites, often showing the rituals performed at a perfect funeral. This hall corresponds to the private quarters of a domestic house. The burial chamber was reached via a shaft or passage which could lead down from the open court in front of the tomb or from the transverse hall. The burial chamber was often undecorated in the New Kingdom but could sometimes be inscribed with texts from the ‘Book of the Dead’ or other religious books. The passage leading to the burial chamber was sealed after the burial had taken place and was not meant to be re-entered. During the Amarna Period (late 18th Dynasty) there was a major upheaval in tomb decoration. Scenes of daily life were replaced with decoration centred on the activities of the royal family. In the Ramesside period (19th and 20th Dyansties), tombs were no longer painted with scenes of daily life. Instead the deceased is now frequently shown worshipping the gods while scenes from funerary books, previously found only in the burial chamber, appear in the chapel with more frequency. Another distinctive change in the Ramesside Period is the use of a yellow background base colour. This was probably used to give the impression that the walls are covered with papyrus which is inscribed with the religious texts and scenes. I'm leading two tours of Egypt this coming year which include a visit to the beautiful painted tombs of Luxor. One of these tours takes place next month (February) and the other is in November: ANCIENT EGYPT: A THOUSAND MILES UP THE NILE A 2-week tour exploring Egypt from Cairo to Abu Simbel led by Dr Michael Birrell Includes: Giza, Cairo Museum, Dahshur, Luxor, Edfu, 3 night Nile cruise Luxor to Aswan, Abu Simbel 13th - 28th November 2017 A$4800.00 per person twin share (airfares extra) Itinerary: www.bcarchaeology.com/upcoming_tours_egypt.html Contact me: mbirrell@tpg.com.au or 0405 492946
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THE BAZAAR OF ISFAHAN Isfahan is located 340 km south of Tehran in the central part of Iran. The golden age of the city began in 1598 when the Safavid Shah Abbas I made it his new capital. The city grew rapidly and acquired great economic importance. The bazaar of Isfahan is one of the best-preserved examples of the kind of large, enclosed, and covered bazaar complex that was typical of most cities in the Muslim world prior to the 20th century. The oldest areas of the present-day bazaar date from the early 17th century; its first stone was laid in 1603. Prior to this date the bazaar of Isfahan was concentrated around the Meydan-e Kohna, the old town center. In 1590 Shah Abbas had decided to move his capital to Isfahan, and although he initially renovated the old bazaar, he later decided to construct a new city centre of palaces, mansions, mosques, and other functional buildings around a new square, the so-called Meydan-e Naqsh-e Jahan. In 1602 work on the new meydan began. First, a one-story façade of arches and porticoes was built, which faced the new square. Through a number of large and small gates people could access the square and the covered bazaar complex behind them. Secondly, an upper-story was built, with commercial offices and artisan shops that were open to the square. Initially, some 200 shops surrounded the square; each was two stories and about five meters high. The lower-story each contained two shops, and the upper-storey four smaller shops, two facing the square and two at the back, which had a small balcony with a protective brick railing. Most of the original floors were made of marble, while the floors added later were coloured tiles and stone. It took a few decades before the bazaar finally acquired its final form. Because the new bazaar at first had to meet the needs of the royal palace complex, the mansions of the Safavid elite as well as of their visitors, the bazaar is often referred to as the royal bazaar. The bazaar still forms the commercial heart of Isfahan, because of its location and continued central commercial function. Its importance is further enhanced by the fact that it is surrounded by a number of public shopping thoroughfares which, although not part of the original bazaar complex, nevertheless are now an integral and dynamic part it. B.C. Archaeology is leading a tour of the antiquities of Iran next October, but its not all site seeing - the shopping opportunities are impressive! We will spend a few days in Isfahan to see its many historic treasures but there is plenty of time to browse the bazaar: ANCIENT IRAN: HISTORY & ARCHAEOLOGY A 3-week tour of Iran exploring ancient and medieval sites led by Dr Michael Birrell Includes: Tehran, Ecbatana, Bisotun, Susa, Shiraz, Persepolis, Pasargadae, Yazd, Isfahan 9th - 30th October 2017 A$7400.00 per person twin share (airfares extra) Itinerary: www.bcarchaeology.com/ancient_iran.html Contact me: info@bcarchaeology.com or 0405492946
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THE TEMPLE OF ATHENA NIKE ON THE ACROPOLIS Just outside the Propylaia, on the south side of the approach to the Acropolis of Athens, is located the temple of Athena Nike. The platform on which is was built is much older, dating back to Late Bronze Age times, and according to the ancient historian Pausanias it was considered to be the spot where the Athenian King Aegeus threw himself into the sea (quite a leap!) when his son Theseus arrived back from Crete with black sails indicating his mission had been unsuccessful. A cult to the goddess Athena Nike had apparently been functioning at the site since the 6th Century BC based on an inscribed altar which was found underneath the Periclean shrine. By the mid 5th Century there was a small limestone temple but with the aggrandisement of the Acropolis it was decided to build a magnificent new marble temple to replace it (and get help in the Peloponnesian War). The temple of Athena Nike was started around 432 BC and appears to have been functioning by 424 BC. Later in the 5th Century a parapet was added around the Nike temple platform which was decorated with scenes of winged victory figures preparing to make sacrifice of a bull to a seated figure of Athena as embodiment of Victory. Not much space was available and the new temple was built in the Ionic style which has narrower columns. The main facade is towards the east with 4 columns at the front – to give a pleasing effect, 4 additional columns were added at the rear of the temple to relieve the otherwise blank facade, even though they are not required. The frieze of the temple had various themes: the east face was decorated with scenes of the Olympian gods standing at rest. The two side scenes, facing north and south, are decorated with scenes showing the Greeks fighting the Persians at Marathon, a rare early representation of actual historical events. The western side of the frieze shows Greeks fighting Greeks and may represent the Athenians fighting the Corinthians. The western pediment showed a Gigantomachy (Gods fighting Giants) while the east showed an Amazonomachy (Greeks fighting Amazons). Inside the temple was a wooden statue of Athena Nike – according to Pausanias it showed the goddess with a pomegranate in one hand and a helmet in the other, indicating her role as guardian of bounty after war. She was shown wingless so she could not leave the city. I will be leading a tour of archaeological sites in Greece in March this year which includes a visit to the Acropolis: ANCIENT GREECE: ARCHAEOLOGY & HISTORY A 3-week tour exploring the archaeology of Greece led by Dr Michael Birrell Includes: Athens, Corinth, Mycenae, Olympia, Delphi, Knossos, Phaestos, Santorini, Sounion 18th March - 7th April 2017 A$7300.00 per person twin share (airfares extra) Itinerary: www.bcarchaeology.com/greece.html Contact me: mbirrell@tpg.com.au or 0405 492946
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THE ZAGROS MOUNTAINS OF IRAN I visited Iran recently and one of the highlights of the trip was to see the stunning landscapes, which are like nowhere else in the Middle East. I crossed the Zagros Mountains twice during my trip. This great mountain range extends for 1500 km along the western edge of the Iranian Plateau. These mountains have been forced up long ago as a result of the collision of the Iranian Plate and the Arabian Plate - this occurred 10-15 million years ago during the Miocene Era. The mountains are predominantly limestone and the enormous cliffs rise hundreds of metres. I'm leading a tour of ancient Iran next October which passes through this stunning mountain range: ANCIENT IRAN: HISTORY & ARCHAEOLOGY A 3-week tour of Iran exploring ancient and medieval sites led by Dr Michael Birrell Includes: Tehran, Ecbatana, Bisotun, Susa, Shiraz, Persepolis, Pasargadae, Yazd, Isfahan, Qom 9th - 30th October 2017 A$7400.00 per person twin share (airfares extra) Itinerary: www.bcarchaeology.com/ancient_iran.html Contact me: mbirrell@tpg.com.au or 0405 492946
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ABU SIMBEL - THE TEMPLES OF RAMESSES THE GREAT Hi everyone - this is Michael Birrell, the owner/manager of B.C. Archaeology Travel. I visited the Egyptian rock temples of Abu Simbel with a tour group recently and took these photos - we arrived in the afternoon, saw the Sound and Light show in the early evening, stayed overnight in the beautiful Sety Hotel overlooking Lake Nasser, and then toured the temples the following morning. The temples of Abu Simbel are located at the southern end of Lake Nasser. Two rock-cut temples were built at the site by Ramesses II, work beginning early in the reign and completed by his regnal year 25. The temples were first described by Europeans after Johann Burckhardt visited the site in 1819. Following the decision to build the Aswan High Dam in the early 1960s, the temples were dismantled and relocated in 1968 on the desert plateau 64m above and 180m west of their original site. The ancient name for the region was Meha. The main temple was dedicated, like other temples built by Ramesses II in Nubia, to four main gods: Amun-Re, Re-Horakhty, Ptah and the divine manifestation of the king. The original mudbrick temenos wall surrounding the temple has only survived on the north side. A ramp gives access to a terrace with statues of the living and mummiform king alternating with images of falcon deities. At the north end of the terrace is an open air solar chapel, while at the southern end of the terrace is the ‘Marriage Stela’ of Ramesses II, recording his union with a Hittite princess in Year 34 of the king’s reign. The rock-cut façade of the temple is shaped like a traditional temple pylon and is dominated by four seated colossi each 22m high. These would normally be free-standing but have been carved from the native sandstone rock. The colossi are flanked by smaller images of the king’s mother, wife and children who are shown standing beside or between his legs. An earthquake during the reign of Ramesses II damaged the colossal figures on either side of the doorway – the upper part of the southern colossi fell down and the northern figure suffered damage to its arm, which was repaired shortly afterwards (probably during the reign of Sety II). Above the main entrance is a massive niche containing a personification of the king’s name. A central door gives access to a hall with eight square pillars – these are fronted by standing statues of the king represented in the form of the god Osiris. This hall corresponds to the open court in a traditional mortuary temple. Reliefs of the battle of Qadesh cover the north wall (signed by Chief Sculptor Piaay) with other military scenes on the southern side. Scenes on either side of the door into the hall depict the king standing in front of various gods – the deified Ramesses has been added in the period after his sed-festival in Year 30. Four suits of rooms open off to either side. These are normally referred to as ‘treasuries’ and would have been used to house the temple equipment. The decoration of these side rooms is not as fine as in the main temple and the colour scheme is more limited. The second hall has four pillars with scenes of the gods interacting with the king. Beyond lies the sanctuary of the temple with statues of the deities Amun-Re, Ramesses, Ptah and Re-Horakhty. The temple was arranged so that the sun shone on the images twice each year: the 21st February and 21st October. The Small Temple of Abu Simbel lies a short distance to the north. Its façade takes the form of a double pylon with six colossal standing statues (10m high) of Ramesses and Neferatri accompanied by their children. The hall has 6-pillars down the central aisle which are carved with the sign of the Hathor-headed sistra in high relief. A narrow vestibule carries a unique scene of the coronation of Nefertari by Isis and Hathor. The sanctuary contains a statue of Hathor in the form of a cow emerging from the rock with a small statue of the king in front of her. The reliefs on the sanctuary walls depict Ramesses II worshipping himself and Nefertari who appears a manifestation of the goddess Hathor. The reliefs throughout the temple are of good quality, depicting slender figures decorated predominantly in gold and white. I will be leading the same tour this coming November and we will also visit the Abu SImbel temples for the Sound and Light Show: ANCIENT EGYPT: A THOUSAND MILES UP THE NILE A 2-week tour exploring Egypt from Cairo to Abu Simbel led by Dr Michael Birrell Includes: Giza, Cairo Museum, Dahshur, Luxor, Edfu, 3 night Nile cruise Luxor to Aswan, Abu Simbel 13th - 28th November 2017 A$4800.00 per person twin share (airfares extra) Itinerary: www.bcarchaeology.com/upcoming_tours_egypt.html Contact me: mbirrell@tpg.com.au or 0405 492946
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BASSAE - THE TEMPLE OF APOLLO The site of Bassae is located in wild country in the region of Arcadia in the NW Peloponnese (southern Greece). Cult activity is attested at Bassae from the late 8th Century BC when the first dedications were made. In the 7th Century BC votives offered at the site included bronze helmets, cuirasses, greaves and shields. It is believed that the Arcadians may have honoured Apollo as their protector (epikourios) which explains the local name of Apollo Epikourios, although Pausanias in his description (8.41) suggests that he protected the region from plague. The first primitive temple was built at the site in 625 BC, probably by the city of Phigaleia which controlled the region. The residents of the city chose an isolated but dramatic site for their temple. As shepherds and hunters, they may have felt that they should worship Apollo in the countryside. Early in the 6th Century the temple was rebuilt and extended. A third temple was built around 500 BC and this was later dismantled and the stone reused for the construction of the Classical temple which we see today. Pausanias states that the temple was built by the famous architect Iktinos who had been responsible for the Parthenon in Athens. The claim that Iktinos designed the temple has been disputed but is not impossible. The interior is remarkable and the conservative exterior may have echoed the third temple on the site. Elements of the plan were certainly derived from the Archaic temple. This was built on the rocky knoll to the south and also had two interior rooms, a cella and adyton. This final temple was built sometime between 430-400 BC. For a city the size of Phigaleia this was an ambitious project which must have been financed in an ad hoc manner when funds were available. There is a decline in the number of votive gifts in the 4th Century BC when other centres in Arcadia became more important. We are told that a bronze statue of Apollo Epikourios was removed from Bassae. The temple was still intact when Pausanias visited Arcadia in the 2nd Century AD. The Classical temple is covered by a tent now to protect it. The structure was built in an exposed place and the severe weather conditions have caused much damage. The region often experiences earthquakes which have also contributed to the deterioration of the temple, although the massive platform on which it was constructed may have been an attempt to guard against seismic activity. The temple faces north rather than east as this suited the landscape. Most of the temple was built of local grey limestone but some elements such as metopes, the frieze and some capitals were of marble from Laconia. The peristyle consists of 6 by 15 Doric columns which were antiquated when built. There was no sculpture in the pediments or the exterior metopes. The reliefs in the metopes above the columns of the porch and opisthodomos (rear chamber) may have depicted the return of Apollo form the land of the Hyperboreans and the rape of the daughters of Leukippos by the Dioskouroi. The design of the cella shrine was revolutionary. On either side there were semi-engaged Ionic columns and at the end of the cella was the earliest known Corinthian column. A frieze of Greeks and Amazons and of Lapiths and Centaurs ran around the exterior of the cella. The site was excavated by the Society of Travellers in 1812 and this material is now in the British Museum. Beyond the cella is the adyton (holy of holies) which has a separate door. This faces east and thus the adyton would have been illuminated by the rising sun. B.C. Archaeology Travel will be leading a tour of the antiquities of Greece which includes a visit to the beautiful but rarely visited site of Bassae: ANCIENT GREECE: ARCHAEOLOGY & HISTORY A 3-week tour exploring the archaeology of Greece led by Dr Michael Birrell Includes: Athens, Corinth, Mycenae, Olympia, Delphi, Knossos, Phaestos, Santorini, Sounion 18th March - 7th April 2017 A$7300.00 per person twin share (airfares extra) Itinerary: www.bcarchaeology.com/greece.html Contact me: info@bcarchaeology.com or 0405 492946
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TEHRAN: THE REZA ABBASI MUSEUM Hi everyone - this is Michael Birrell, the owner/manager of B.C. Archaeology Travel. I spent a week in Tehran, the capital of Iran, last September. One of the highlights of Tehran is the Reza Abbasi Museum, named after a renown Persian artist of the Safavid Period (17th Century). The Museum was opened in 1977 and houses some of the most beautiful treasures from the history of Persia. I will be leading a tour of ancient Iran next October and the group will see this magnificent collection of artefacts in the Reza Abbasi Museum: ANCIENT IRAN: HISTORY & ARCHAEOLOGY A 3-week tour of Iran exploring ancient and medieval sites led by Dr Michael Birrell Includes: Tehran, Ecbatana, Bisotun, Susa, Shiraz, Persepolis, Pasargadae, Yazd, Isfahan, Qom 9th - 30th October 2017 $7400.00 per person twin share (airfares extra) Itinerary: www.bcarchaeology.com/ancient_iran.html Contact me: info@bcarchaeology.com or 0405 492946
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TWO FREE LECTURES IN PERTH: (1) 'ANCIENT MERIDA' (2) 'THE LIBRARY OF ALEXANDRIA' Hi - this is Michael Birrell, the owner/manager of B.C. Archaeology Travel. If you live in Perth (or are visiting) I am giving some free lectures for the Roman Archaeology Group on the 5th February. You are very welcome to attend but should let them know you are coming.
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