Description

Ivory plaque depicting the god Dionysus, god of fertility and of wine, standing and leaning on a tree branch.

The mythical motifs represent the first stage in sculpting in ivory which extends from the third century to the fifth century CE when Graeco-Roman and classical style motifs were prevalent.

Ivory Uses

Ivory was used either for decorative or utilitarian purposes, such as in sculpting panels, in making round or rectangular jewellery boxes or as furniture inlays, particularly the thrones and seats of bishops. It was also used to engrave the names of important personages or family events or to commemorate people. It was also used as book covers for psalters.

Ivory during the sixth century CE became popular as an inlay to wooden furnishings, particularly church doors, the central panel (iconostasis) separating the body of the church (nave) from the sanctuary (altar) and icon holders or stands.

Historical phases of Ivory carving

According to some art historians of ivory sculpture, there are two phases of this art in Egypt. The first phase covers the third to the fifth century CE and is highly influenced by Graeco-Roman styles and subject matter. The second phase stretches from the sixth century CE, when Christian motifs and folk methods of working ivory took over. The use of ivory started to dwindle during that period, possibly due to the unavailability of that medium in Egypt.

• John Beckwith, Early Christian and Byzantine Art, 2nd ed., The Pelican History of Art (London: Penguin, 1979).
• O. M. Dalton, East Christian Art: A Survey of the Monuments (Oxford: Clarendon Press, 1925).
• Zahi Hawass, ed., Bibliotheca Alexandrina: The Archaeology Museum (Cairo: The Supreme Council of Antiquities, 2002): 118-119.
• David Talbot Rice, Byzantine Art, Pelican Book A287 (London: Penguin, 1968).
• Kurt Weitzmann, ed., Age of Spirituality: Late Antique and Early Christian Art, Third to Seventh Century: Catalogue of the Exhibition at the Metropolitan Museum of Art, November 19, 1977, through February 12, 1978 (Princeton, NJ: Princeton University Press, 1978).
• حكمت محمد بركات، جماليات الفنون القبطية (القاهرة: عالم الكتب، 1999).
• عزت زكي حامد قادوس، ومحمد عبد الفتاح السيد، الآثار والفنون القبطية (الإسكندرية: دار المعرفة الجامعية، 2000).