Guide to the Pergamon Museum

HE PERGAMON MUSEUM which was built according lan 'ritz f u e e to the p of Wol f, nd r the sup rvision of e u 1 8 a e 1 8 . Max Hasak , was b g n in 97 , nd finish d in 99 1 0 1 It was not, however, until the end of the year 9 , that r the collection was completely arranged . The pu pose which governed the plan of the Museum was the erec tion of a building in which the frieze of the Great Altar e e of P rgamon might find , as nearly as possibl , its original setting and light . The result is a large rectangular room e ea with the Great Altar in the middl , l ving a broad passage for the inspection of the frieze as well as of the statues and important inscriptions set up along the out . e rm side wall The spac within the altar, fo s a room of great altitude especially adapted to the exhibition of e e ce architectural exampl s , where ar pla d not only frag a ments of the most import nt buildings of Pergamon , but also those from Priene and Magnesia on the Maeander . O ller River utside this room is another broad ga y, e a a e a corr sponding to the pass ge bov , cont ining other i me i important statues and inscript ons from the sa cit es, for which there is not space in the chief colle ctions already mentioned . It is accessible to persons making a e D rect r sp cial study of the subject, by applying to the i o 6 s f of the Museum . A cla sified collection o isolated frag ments and less significant inscriptions is set up in the basement below . Thus the produ cts of the excavations conducted by a e l h e c the Roy l Museums of B r in, in t ree H llenisti cities e u e of Asia Minor ar found in this M s um , with the exception of the antiquities from Pergamon and Prien e which are more fitti ngly exhibited in the collection of antiquities . E N THE HISTOR' O'P RGAMO . Pergamon is situ ated in Asia Minor about 1 8 miles inland from the west coast . It lies opposite the Island Le e of sbos , almost half way between Smyrna on th south, and Troy on the north . The citadel at Troy where e e e s e Schli mann mad his xcavations , called al o in th e e e u e l g nd P rgamon, the b rg or citad l , must not be con fused with this Pergamon which was the capital of the Attalid dynasty from the middle of the third century until 1 33 before Christ . e e The old fortifi d settlement , scarc ly mentioned in e e u anci nt history , lay on th top of a mountain abo t 2 50 meters above the present town of Bergama . The mountain was accessible from the south and commanded a broad view of the Kaiko s Valley . K L simacho s It was on this height that ing y , one of e A e e the succ ssors of l xander th Great, deposited a store of treasure under the protection of Philetairo s a com mander of mercenary tr00ps . Having preserved the treas ure through the period of war and disturbance which Philetairo s s e followed , made himself ma ter of the fortr ss as as t well its weal h, and through the skilful use of the e u e e latter, won for himself and his successors gr at infl nc an d Phi tair extensive possessions . le o s was succeeded by his ’ — I 2 6 2 1 . brother s son , Eumenes ( 3 4 B C ) who , in was Attalo s e turn, followed by I, the son of anoth r e Phil etai broth r of ro s . H s or of Per amon 8 i t y g . — Attal s 2 . o I ( 4 1 1 97 B C . ) established the fame of his house by his successfu l conflicts with the Syrian e e e kings and his victory ov r th Gauls , whose hord s in A e A sia Minor were looked upon as invincibl . s outward a s me e mark of his powerful military position , he s u d th title of King and provided for the perpetuation of his ee e e e e me e d ds by th r ction of gr at monu nts . Th much mutilated bases of these commemorative battle-monu m e a e r e e e e ents, with th ir fr gm ntary insc iptions ar pr s rv d in this Museum ; the bronze statu es themselves are no t - x extant . The well known marble statue of The dying ' ' e e m me e ea Gaul in th Capitoline Mus u at Ro , giv s an id e e e t A of th styl and b au y of these lost statu es . ttalos e s s joined th Romans in their first conte ts in the Ea t, within the last decade of his reign . He also took an a e e ee e ctiv part in th war complications in Gr c , and it e e was there , as the first coll ctor of whom we hav any e e e knowledge , that he procur d the art tr asur s for his e in capital . The Mus um has testimony of these works the inscription -bearing bases of statues which were taken ee m e w s from Gr ce to Perga on , the works of r no ned artist of the fifth and fourth centuries before Christ. Of the building activity of Attalo s there remains no positive e evidence , though it is probable that th extension of the wall of the town about half way down the side of e e e . the mountain , took plac und r his r ign — 1 . e Eumenes II . ( 1 97 5 9 B the son and succ ssor Attalo s e e e e e of , und r whose rul P rgamon becam th A me capital of almost all sia Minor , followed the sa political policy as his father . The town now extended to the foot of the mountain and was surrounded by a strong wall . H r o is to y f Perg amon . 9 Eumenes built the most splendid monuments of which m the a ' A we have any re ains , Great Alt r of eus and thena its e e e with rich frieze , and th stat ly stoa or colonnad which enclosed the sacred precinct of Athena and com c muni ated with the famous library of Pergamon . Some of the most beautiful statues and the most im e e e e portant in th history of art, now in th Mus um, onc . ' m e decorated this library ro th statues of noted authors , e m the which also stood in th library , there re ain only fragments of the pedestals with the names incised . Eumenes H . also erected victory monuments like those Attal s . of o I . as the inscriptions in the collection testify Eumenes was followed by his brother Attal os II . — 1 1 8 . e ( 59 3 B C ) who before he cam to the throne , ed - d icated the semi circular marble seat, now outside the entrance to the Museum . A — t 1 . B Next came t alo s III . ( 38 1 33 B C ) son of umen es 11. who bequeathed his kingdom to the Romans . An inscription in the Museum gives an interesting decree the e of people , after the death of th king , before the ‘ had Romans taken possession of the heritage . Under e Roman rule , Pergamon spread out in th plain to the e e T west, b yond the boundary of th present urkish settle ment . That the site of the old capital was not yet aban do ned rf e , is shown by the powe ul r mains of the Trajan temple on a commanding point of the height, the gym nasiu m built in the time of Hadrian on a terrace half e way down th slope, and still farther proof , is the - restoration to the honor of Caracalla , of a half des tro ed h y temple of the time of the kings . T is temple stood above on the slope of the Acropolis near the theatre . The Ex cava ons ti . We know very little about the vicissitudes of the in z e an d . Let city , the By antin Turkish periods it suffice, that the inhabited quarter of the old town on the moun tain grew narrower and narrower until under Turkish was e rule it ntirely deserted , while in the plain there rose again out of the ruin a flourishing settlement . To the different fortifications behind which the inhabitants e v tried to protect thems l es , belongs a strong wall of in defence, probably built the eighth century to keep back on- the pressing Mohammedans . This wall was built chiefly from the parts of the magnificent old structures e which r mained there , until brought to light by the Prussian excavations . ' E CA'ATIONS . 1 8 In 7 3 , Carl Humann sent the first pieces of the frieze from the Pergamon citadel to Berlin, a gift which gave the impulse to the Prussian excavations .

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