The Portland Vase

Paperback / softback

Main Details

Title The Portland Vase
Authors and Contributors      By (author) Susan Walker
SeriesObjects in Focus
Physical Properties
Format:Paperback / softback
Pages:64
Dimensions(mm): Height 210,Width 145
Category/GenreCarving and modelling, moulding and casting
ISBN/Barcode 9780714150222
ClassificationsDewey:748.80937
Audience
General
Illustrations 6 Illustrations, black and white; 25 Illustrations, color

Publishing Details

Publisher British Museum Press
Imprint British Museum Press
Publication Date 22 November 2004
Publication Country United Kingdom

Description

The Portland Vase is thought to have been crafted during the reign of the Roman Emperor Augustus (27 BC-14 AD). A work of outstanding technical skill, it is decorated with scenes of love and marriage, the precise meaning of which has been the cause of much debate and interpretation. This book offers an exciting new reading of the vase, setting it in the context of the dramatic relationships between Octavia, Anthony and Cleopatra. It also explores the lively history of the vase, from the earliest records in Italy to its purchase by Sir William Hamilton and the Dukes of Portland, and its abiding influence on British craftsmen such as Josiah Wedgwood.

Author Biography

Susan Walker is Keeper of Antiquities at the Ashmolean Museum, Oxford. She was formerly Deputy Keeper in the Department of Greek and Roman Antiquities at the British Museum. She is the author of Roman Art and Greek and Roman Portraits, co-author of Ancient Faces: Mummy Portraits from Roman Egypt, and co-editor of Cleopatra of Egypt: from History to Myth.