Epiphany
Material:
Steel and gold leaf
Dimensions:
55 x 55 x 50 cm
Year:
2021
La civilització minoica és la primera cultura de l’Edat del Coure i de l’Edat del Bronze apareguda a la illa de Creta. L’exemple més paradigmàtic en la convergència d’art, societat, economia i religió minoiques, però, no es troba a Creta, sinó a l’illa de Santorini, també coneguda pel seu antic nom, Thera. Cap al segon mil·lenni AEC s’hi va desenvolupar l’assentament d’Akrotiri, fins que una erupció volcànica massiva va destruir el centre de l’illa, aproximadament el 1613 AEC (Magadán i Rodríguez, 2013). El major conjunt de pintures que s’hi han trobat fins ara daten de l’anomenat període Neopalacial (Field, 2007), i es troben a les parets de l’estructura anomenada Xeste 3: segons el consens majoritari, l’elaborada narració pictòrica de les seves parets representa rituals complexos d’iniciació i d’ofrena, que involucren a homes i, especialment, a dones de diferents edats, i culmina en la figura femenina central del primer pis, qui tradicionalment ha estat identificada com una deessa o Potnia (Günkel-Maschek, 2014; Nikolaïdou, 2012; Vlachopoulos, 2016).
Seated on an altar, splendid and luminous, this figure wears earrings and pendants in the shapes of ducks and dragonflies, and a saffron flower tattooed on her cheek. Four more women appear at various stages of the saffron harvest (Field, 2007; Nugent, 2008). Although in general, the different interpretations of the pictorial program of Xeste 3 have revolved around religion, Field proposes an alternative reading of the nature of the female figures represented in this frescoes. Saffron was revered as a multifunctional resource rooted in many facets of this society: as a spice, as a yellow dye for fabrics, and as a component in the manufacture of perfumes, achieving great economic importance. Therefore, if women were as clearly associated with saffron as the iconographic records seem to show, it is likely that they played a determining role in its production and distribution, and their participation in the commercial field should be considered. Thus, Field concludes, the images in the frescoes could reflect the metaphorical authority of a goddess, but also the literal power of a ruler, an elite product controller, or a merchant (2007).
· Field, P. (2007): Is divinity a gender issue? The case of the Minoan “Goddess”. (Tesi de Master). Universidad de Oslo, Oslo.
· Günkel-Maschek, U. (2014): Establishing the Minoan ‘Enthroned Goddess’ in the Neopalatial Period: Images, architecture, and elitist ambition. E. Alram-Stern, F. Blakolmer, S. Deger-Jalkotzy, R. Laffineur y J. Weilhartner (Eds.). Metaphysis. Ritual, Myth and Symbolism in the Aegean Bronze Age (Aegaeum 39), 255-262. Peeters.
· Magadán Olives, M. T., y Rodríguez Manero, I. (2013): Una mirada retrospectiva a las restauraciones antiguas III. El yacimiento de Acrotiri en la isla de Santorini, Grecia. Unicum, 12, 119-131.
· Morro Mas, Antoni Miquel (2023). Tras el Azafrán Minoico: una Propuesta Escultórica para un Nuevo Paradigma. BRAC – Barcelona, Research, Art, Creation. Published Online First. Doi: 10.17583/brac.12010
· Nikolaïdou, M. (2012): Looking for Minoan and Mycenaean Women: Paths of Feminist Scholarship Towards the Aegean Bronze Age. S. L. James y S. Dillon (Eds.). A Companion to Women in the Ancient World, 38-53. Blackwell Publishing Ltd.
· Nugent, M. (2008). Seasonal flux-three flowers for three seasons: seasonal ritual at Akrotiri, Thera. Iris, 21, 2-20
· Vlachopoulos, A. G. (2016): Images of Physis or perceptions of Metaphysis? Some thoughts on the iconography of the Xeste 3 building at Akrotiri, Tera. E. Alram-Stern et al. (Eds.), Metaphysis. Ritual, Myth and Symbolism in the Aegean Bronze Age, Aegaeum 39, 375-386). Peeters.
