Ligabue Magazine 72

Given the importance of the exhibition, we have devoted the whole of this issue to the fascinating theme of idols, thus creating a kind of monograph dealing with various aspects of the topic, involving philosophy, history, anthropology and, of course, archaeology. So what you will find on leafing through the magazine are idols, idolatry, iconoclasm, fetishes, myths and mythmaking. Annie Caubet is not only the exhibition curator, she is also the editor of the catalogue. In her article, she describes a fascinating journey through time and space in search of statuettes. The period examined is particularly interesting because it was a so-called era of transition, when the late Neolithic evolved into the early Bronze Age, and just when some human settlements grew from agricultural villages into more organised interacting centres giving rise to the embryo of urbanised societies.

The vast area of production of the objects basically embraces the whole of the Old World: from the Iberian Peninsula to the Indus valley. It is surprising to see how very distant regions shared the same features. The spread of the phenomenon was favoured by communications and trading that even in such remote times made use of well established land and sea routes. Itinerant artisans produced anthropomorphic figurines using exotic raw materials ranging from African ivory to Sardinian obsidian. In the second article, Julien Volper, curator at the Royal Museum of Central Africa in Tervuren, Belgium, tells us about fetishes and the cult of the dead in the huge central area of the African continent. Like tomb art in gemeral, fetishes are a way of prolonging the life of the dead. As long as the tomb sculptures don’t crumble to dust, the memory of the deceased will live on. In other cases, figurines dedicated to ancestors are kept in the everyday places of the living

so that their spirits will be benevolent towards the family. Where there are idols there is light, and we are dazzled by their shining or lustre. This is the subject of the article by Marino Niola, a professor of anthropology of symbols at the Suor Orsola Benincasa University in Naples, with a special interest in aspects of the contemporary. Objects of splendour and wonder, idols have the same kind of eternal rays that Dante saw circumfused with his beloved Beatrice. They glitter with metals and reflecting glass, or sparkle like crystals. From the golden calf to Swarovski, from jewels to rhinestones, lustre is a symbol of power, of the sacred and the earthly reflection of celestial light. A shimmering thread leads from the sovereigns of the ancient world to contemporary idols, such as Madonna or Michael Jackson: audiences had to be and still have to be dazzled by their light. This brings us to Andrea Tagliapietra, professor of the history of ideas and philosophy of culture at the San Raffaele University, Milan. He illustrates the meaning of idola as a vision of the divine. Not simply a reflection, because sacrifices are made to idols, and idols may be a harbinger of collective violence, or the dramatization of sacrifice.

Idols can, however, also provoke a reaction, and therefore end up being destroyed, burned or crushed, often together with those who worshipped them. This is what is known as iconoclasm and Nicola Bergamo, a Venetian Byzantinist, helps us understand the origins of the word in the dark period of the 8th century when sacred images were destroyed in Constantinople. We have only a limited view of events at that time because the available sources are almost all iconodule, i.e. produced by those who wanted to save religious images. Having almost being wiped off the map in the aftermath of a crushing defeat at the Battle of Agnadello (14 May 1509), Venice rose again and cut out a new role for itself by attaining mythical status. Alessandro Marzo Magno, a journalist, writer and now the new editor of Ligabue Magazine, describes how the Serenissima was no longer a military power capable of competing with the great European states but became a symbol, an example of enduring good government that set the standard for other nations. Which brings us back to splendour: Venice dazzled with resplendent art and beauty. Wealth was a political value and public festivities developed into lavish civic rituals that vied with the religious ceremonies.

At this point, all I can add is a hearty bon voyage!