The Parthenon Frieze

Neils's examination of the Parthenon frieze's visual language offers new insight into this important monument.

Jenifer Neils (Author)

9780521684026, Cambridge University Press

Paperback, published 27 February 2006

316 pages, 174 b/w illus.
25.4 x 17.7 x 1.8 cm, 0.817 kg

'… a valuable book that will appeal to specialists and non-specialists alike … The Parthenon Frieze will certainly find a place in many libraries, both institutional and personal, and it establishes high standards for other scholars aspiring to reexamine a significant monument of classical art.' The Classical Journal

The Parthenon frieze, one of Western civilization's major monuments, has been the subject of intense study for over two hundred years. Most scholarship has sought an overall interpretation of the monument's iconography and therefore neglects the visual language of the sculpture, an essential tool for a full understanding of the narrative. Dr Jenifer Neils's study provides an in-depth examination of the frieze which decodes its visual language, but also analyzes its conception and design, style and content, and impact on the visual arts over time. Unique in its wide-ranging approach, The Parthenon Frieze also brings ethical reasoning to bear on the issue of repatriation as part of the ongoing debate on the Elgin Marbles.

Preface
Introduction
Polis: the context of ritual
Paradeigma: designing the frieze
Techne: carving the frieze
Mimesis: the high classical style
Iconographia: identifying the players
Iconologia: interpreting the frieze
Kleos: the impact of the frieze
Thauma: whose heritage?

Subject Areas: History of art / art & design styles [AC]