- Title
- Nude, Robed and Masked Processions: Considering the Figural Images in the Teleilat Ghassul Wall Paintings, Jordan
- Creator
- Drabsch, Bernadette
- Relation
- Human Iconography and Symbolic Meaning in Near Eastern Prehistory p. 111-129
- Relation
- Oriental and European Archaeology 11
- Relation
- https://doi.org/10.2307/j.ctvvh865z.10
- Publisher
- Austrian Academy of Sciences Press
- Resource Type
- book chapter
- Date
- 2019
- Description
- The wall paintings from the Chalcolithic (c. 4700-3600 BC) site of Teleilat Ghassul in the south Jordan Valley are rich with symbolism and human iconography. The figural images depicted in the complex 'procession' scenes are vital elements in our understanding of this enigmatic preliterate culture. This paper will consider the anthropomorphic figures and their associated motifs in two ways. Discussion will establish key attributes of the figures, such as elaborate clothing (or lack of clothing), the masks, associated implements, bodily decoration and posture, thus viewing the human bodies as inscriptive. Scene compositions will then be considered, exploring aspects alluding to social stratification and ritual practice. Secondly, the human representations will be viewed from a more phenomenological viewpoint, considering the experience of individuals depicted in the scenes (and those viewing them), while exploring the role clothing and nudity played in shaping public and private identities.
- Subject
- paintings; symbolism; human iconography; enigmatic preliterate culture
- Identifier
- http://hdl.handle.net/1959.13/1460336
- Identifier
- uon:45931
- Identifier
- ISBN:9783700182054
- Language
- eng
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