Greek art at the British Museum

The ancient Greece spanned from the 9th Century BC until the end of Antiquity, around 600 AD. It was one of the most incredible and prolific civilizations in the History. Greece was the language of Homer, the sculpture of Phidias, the philosophy of Plato and the oratory of Pericles. 

There are just a few preserved artworks from this period. The paintings had weak support and the sculptures, despite they were made with durable materials, were destroyed and the stone and bronze were "recycled" in the Middle Ages.

Perfection, beauty, balance, harmony and technique were their goals and the main themes were gods and mythology, heroes and battles and athletes.

Unfortunately, Greece lost most of its art, which was shared in between many countries around the world. In fact, the Greek government has been formally requesting the British Museum, for many years, the return of the Parthenon's rests.

And precisely, this museum has developed a new exhibition about this country: Defining beauty. The body in ancient Greek art. The show will be displayed until the 5th of July and the fee is £16.50, children under 16 free.

The exhibition will explore this amazing culture through the 150 objects displayed. Besides the marble statues, the show includes some terracotta objects, bronzes and vases. 

The Discobolus. The British Museum

The Metropolitan Museum in New York, the Pergamon Museum in Berlin or the Glyptothek in Copenhagen are lending some of their treasures. Even the Queen is participating in this show with Aphrodite, one of the sculptures of her collection. But the truth is that the main part of the exhibition are objects from the British Museum.

In the first room, the visitor will be able to see a newly discovered nude athlete, the Apoxyomenos, which was found near Lošinj, Croatia in 1999. In the same space, there is a copy of part of the Parthenon frieze made by the master Phidias and another two marble roman copies: the Discobolus by Myron and the Doryphoros, the Polykleitos masterpiece.

At the end of the exposition, the Dyonysus, which was part of the Parthenon, and the Belvedere Torso from the Vatican dominate the whole room and they leave the visitor with a good impression.

Ancient Greek art and society have been copied and imitated for 2,500 years and still, nowadays, they have influence in every single one of us.