Welcome back to the Female Nude series!
In the previous article, we explored the representation, visibility and understanding of Mesopotamian women, through classical and ancient texts. We also looked into the social aspects of these representations through analysis of the nadītu and women working in the textile industry.
We must separate any preconceived ideas about the nude body, instead taking a neutral viewpoint to obtain an objective understanding of nudity in Mesopotamia. Some art historians believe there is a distinction between the naked body, and the nude body. They argue that being deprived of wearing any clothes is to be naked, something which likely causes embarrassment; the nude, however, is a reformed body that exhales confidence and prosperity. The ‘nude’ is an art form which originated from the ancient Greeks, not to be seen as a subject of art, but rather as a form of art. The nude is not an imitation, it is perfected, imperfections are eliminated and we are left with art rather than representation.
However, the nude in Mesopotamia does not imply erotic or sexual appeal in this way. Many scholars of South West Asia have not seriously considered such nude representations and images, this neglect leading to the misconception by both South-west Asia and classical scholars of the Mesopotamian attitude toward nudity. As far back as ca. 6000 BCE, images of heavily voluptuous women appear in Mesopotamia, supposedly thought to be depicting fertility and the famous mother goddess. Her ample breasts, prominent genitals and thick thighs were believed to have possessed a magical fertility purpose. Although, during the Old Babylonian Period (ca. BCE), these images were associated with Ishtar (Inanna), the goddess of love and war, often portrayed in her partially nude form.
Sexual love was an aspect of daily, healthy life in Mesopotamia and was an active part of their civilisation. It features heavily in literature; the Epic of Gilgamesh, where the sexual escapades of Shamhat and Enkidu are narrated rather vividly.
Alongside crude plaques depicting sexual intercourse and popular love poetry that translates quite explicitly, as shown below:
“The beer of my […], Il-Ummiyah, the tapstress Is sweet And her vulva Is sweet like her beer And her beer is sweet! And her vulva Is sweet like her chatter And her beer is sweet! Her bittersweet beer And her beer are sweet!”
(Translation: Jacobsen 1987a: 96)
This Sumerian Love Poem supports the claim that sexuality and the nude form would not have been met with such prudishness in Mesopotamia. Similarly, the myth of Ishtar sees her descending into the Netherworld; at each gate - to which there are seven - she is made to remove a piece of clothing until she arrives nude at the land of the dead. Some scholars perceive this as being a method of degrading her, as removing her robe would disgrace her. However, nothing in Mesopotamian literature suggests such an interpretation, especially as Ishtar is often shown in her partially nude form. As well as this, she would have been unable to use her powers in the Netherworld. So the stripping of her garments has been perceived as a symbolic preparation for entry.
Now, let’s look at the representations of women and nudity in ancient Greece and Rome as a comparative exercise.
Some of the most famous models of art are Greek statues depicting the female nude - especially the goddess Aphrodite (Roman Venus). Her sculpted form appears everywhere, in gardens, museums, villas and palaces, but do we take her for granted? Simply not see her? Her nude form is considered the perfect representation of what the female body should look like.
The perfected body image; sculpted by Praxiteles during the 4th century BCE, Aphrodite of Knidos, the first monumental cult statue, revolutionised the way Greek and Roman societies viewed the naked female body. Modern classicists argue that to ancient viewers and contemporary scholars, Aphrodite of Knidos was admired - and disapproved - due to her sexual allure and erotic implications. In reality, however, she represented more than this. Covering her ‘modesty’ signifies her fertility as opposed to any shame, while her general stance symbolises a female version of the heroic nude usually seen through statues of male deities.
The Aphrodite of Knidos and the new concept of beauty were the catalysts to the revolution of female nudity in art during later historical periods.
But what about representations of nudity in Renaissance Italy? Arguably, the Italian Renaissance is a fascinating period of history to look at female representations in art. Although heavily influenced by the classical Greek and Roman artistic styles, they viewed the nude body in seemingly different ways; the body is merely a container for the soul or the spirit of the individual. Similar to how statues of Aphrodite appear all over the shop, famous Italian Renaissance paintings and sculptures have become so popular that they appear in all avenues of society. How many people do you know with a Botticelli or Michelangelo tattoo? However, these representations were not created or perceived the same way as the Aphrodite of Knidos or depictions of Mesopotamian women. Instead, the naked body is met with a prudish reaction and thought. Unfortunately, this is damaged further by art critics who - writing from the mid-20th century until a few years back - claim that some female nudes, such as the woman in Michelangelo’s 'Night' appear disturbing and masculine; her body distorted by childbirth and lactation. These critics identify the woman in Night as not conforming to the timelessness associated with the nude form, revealing that we still believe there to be a perfect image. The English Renaissance, in particular, saw the naked body as sinful. Interestingly, there are more images of nude males, as it is rare to see nude women. The human figure works not only as an aesthetic notion but also as a force of work in society. Perhaps, this is the reasoning behind all images of women fully clad in multiple layers of clothing with very little flesh on show to eliminate any sexual desire or appeal that women possess as to keep them for rightful, legitimate heirs. It is clear how different societies perceived and valued the body and what the nude body represented; in Mesopotamia, the female nude was powerful, seamless and - mostly - controlled by men but expressed publicly. Renaissance nude was, in comparison, a combination of idealistic perfection and sin, with the coverage of the body controlled by men due to fear and religion. Text: Olivia Berry. MENAM Archaeology. Copyright 2022.
Further reading:
Bahrani, Z. 1993. The Iconography of the Nude in Mesopotamia. Notes in the History of Art, 12/2, 12-19. Bahrani, Z. 2001. Women of Babylon: Gender and Representation in Mesopotamia. London: Routledge. Bonfante, L. 1989. Nudity as a Costume in Classical Art. American Journal of Archaeology, 93/4, 543. Clark, K. 1956. The Nude: A Study of Ideal Art. London: Penguin Books. Garrison, J., and Robb, D, M., 1953. Art in the Western World. London: Harper and Row. Gent. L. and Llewellyn, N., 1995. Renaissance Bodies: The Human Figure in English Culture c. 1540 - 1660. Lonon: Reaktion Books. Jacobsen, T. 1987. The Harps that Once --: Sumerian Poetry in Translation. New Haven, CT: Yale University Press. Mitchell-Havelock, C. 1995. The Aphrodite of Knidos and Her Successors: A Historical Review of the Female Nude in Greek Art. United States of America: The University of Michigan Press.
Image credits:
Image 1: The Israel Museum, Jerusalem.
https://www.imj.org.il/en/collections/334468
Image 2: The Israel Museum, Jerusalem.
https://www.imj.org.il/en/collections/379420
Image 3: Image taken from University of Cambridge, Museum of Classical Archaeology Databases. https://museum.classics.cam.ac.uk/collections/casts/aphrodite-knidos
Image 4: Image taken from Wikimedia Commons (ownership George M. Groutas) - https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Night_%28Michelangelo%29,_The_Sagrestia_Nuova_at_the_Medici_Chapel.jpg
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