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The Diver of Paestum: Youth, Eros, and the Sea in Ancient Greece

by Tonio Holscher , Robert Savage
Save 35% Save 35%
Current price ₹1,573.00
Original price ₹2,420.00
Original price ₹2,420.00
Original price ₹2,420.00
(-35%)
₹1,573.00
Current price ₹1,573.00

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Book cover type: Hardcover
  • ISBN13: 9781509568130
  • Binding: Hardcover
  • Subject: N/A
  • Publisher: Polity Press
  • Publisher Imprint: Polity Press
  • Publication Date:
  • Pages: 136
  • Original Price: USD 25.0
  • Language: English
  • Edition: N/A
  • Item Weight: 308 grams
  • BISAC Subject(s): History / Ancient & Classical

Since its discovery in 1968, the painting of a diver on a tomb in Paestum, originally the Greek colony of Poseidonia in southern Italy, has left viewers spellbound. It depicts a beautiful and enigmatic scene: a young man dives headfirst into the water from a cliff or tower. The image is joined by others from the same tomb depicting a banquet of young people drinking wine, playing games and enjoying music. Understanding this painting is often seen as a key to unlocking some of the mysteries of ancient Greek culture - and therein lies the puzzle. What is the meaning of the diver? Is it, as many have argued, a metaphorical representation of the passage from life to a world beyond?

The eminent art historian Tonio H�lscher rejects this view, arguing that there is nothing symbolic or metaphorical about the painting: the scenes celebrate the real lives of the Greek colonists of the early 5th century BC. The painting captures a young man's spirited personality and pursuits during a life which may have been short, but was lived to the full. In a groundbreaking reversal of how the painting is typically interpreted, this book opens a window onto the world of Ancient Greece and its culture of athleticism, eroticism, love for nature and enjoyment of the sea. A joyful ode to youth, it is above all a unique portrait of the zest for life in Antiquity.

Tonio Hölscher is Emeritus Professor of Classical Archaeology at the University of Heidelberg.

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