The encounter and confrontation between two great Mediterranean civilizations is at the heart of the fascinating exhibition Etruscan Egyptians from Eugene Berman to the Golden Scarab which marks the debut of the new space for temporary exhibitions at Central Montemartini. The exhibition provides an opportunity to compare the two ancient cultures by drawing inspiration from the precious Egyptian artifacts, dated between the eighth and third centuries BC, and found in the most recent excavation campaigns carried out in Vulci, an important city in southern Etruria. . To the unpublished discoveries of Vulci are added the precious Egyptian finds Berman collection and works on loan from the Egyptian branch of the National Archaeological Museum of Florence. Everyone talks about commercial exchanges, but above all about the cultural dialogue between civilizations that shared ideals of royalty, symbols of power and religious practice.
A comparison that also wants to represent an opportunity for reflection on the value of dialogue between cultures, a relationship that has always been a source of progress for people.
The exhibition is accompanied by an introductory section that allows you to understand the taste of the collection of the nineteenth century, especially by two lovers of the great civilizations of the ancient world, Augusto Castellani And Giovanni Barracco, who lived and worked in the same years. The two collectors were among the greatest experts in ancient art of the time, linked to the complex and multifaceted Roman scenario for archaeological research and antiquarian trade. Both, with an act of liberalism, determined their collections to the municipality of Rome, Castellani enriched the Capitoline museums and in 1905 Barracco inaugurated a “Museum of Ancient Sculptures” housed in a small neoclassical building built with purpose. This section is followed by the exhibition of valuable Egyptian works from the collection of Eugene Berman, Russian painter, illustrator, set designer and art collector, donated in 1952 to the Superintendence of the Archaeological Heritage of Southern Etruria.
The exhibition continues with five sections: Gold, the Metal of the Gods; Eastern royalty and its perception in the Etruscan world; Life after death; Egyptian and Etruscan deities; Perfume and cosmetics as luxury goods.
The exhibition concludes with a reference to the activity of the Carabinieri Command for the Protection of Cultural Heritage, with the publication of the precious burial equipment for the Tomb of the Golden Scarab, found in Vulci in 2016 as part of the activities to combat secret excavations.
INFORMATION:
Exhibition: Etruscan Egyptians. From Eugene Berman to Golden Scarab
Location: Central Montemartini, Via Ostiense 106 – 00154 Rome
Open to the public: 21 December 2017 – 30 June 2018
Hours: Tuesday – Sunday 9-19; 24 and 31 December 9-14
(the ticket office closes half an hour earlier)
Closed: Monday 1 January, 1 May, 25 December
Tickets: Single ticket including admission to the museum and exhibition for an amount of € 11 full and € 10 reduced for non-residents
Single ticket including admission to the museum and the exhibition for an amount of € 10 full and € 9 reduced for residents
Free for the categories set by current rates
Promoted by Roma Capitale, Department of Cultural Growth – Capitoline Superintendency for Cultural Heritage with
Surveillance of archeology, visual arts and landscape in the metropolitan area of Rome, the province of Viterbo and southern Etruria, with the municipality of Montalto di Castro and the Vulci Foundation
Curated by Alfonsina Russo, Claudio Parisi Presicce, Simona Carosi and Antonella Magagnini
Communication and museum services: Zètema Progetto Cultura
Info Show Tel. 060608 (every day 9.00 – 19.00)
www.centralemontemartini.org; www.museiincomune.it