Funeral Relief of No'om (?) Wife of Haira, Son of Maliku




    So many questions about our history are solved through works of art left behind.  The significance of
   such pieces of artwork can help provide a small insight into the lives of our ancestors.

   The Historical Significance
   The Artistic Significance
   The Archeological Significance

   But what's the connection to today's big wigs?

Artist: Unknown
Culture: Syrian, Palmyra
Title of Work: Funeral Relief of No'om (?) Wife of Haira, Son of Maliku
Dates: Circa 150 CE
Medium: Limestone
Category: Sculpture
Dimensions: 50.2 x 39.7 x 18.7 cm (19-3/4 x 15-5/8 x 7-3/8 in.)


The Historical Significance

From the Syrian city of Palmyra, this funerary monument was believed to hold and protect the deceased person's personality or soul.  It is a nafsa  or nefes.  The sculpture displays the exaggerant dress and jewelry adorning the woman, possibly indicating her status and wealth in the town, or even displaying the wealth of the town itself since it was a regional trading center.  The city of Palmyra was a part of the Silk Road, an important trading route that connected the known world at the time.  It went as far as China and further east.  During the Roman Empire, Palmyra was an independent city-state settled by Arabians and centered around an oasis.  The cities high point was in the second and third centuries CE.  Funerary reliefs have been in history for centuries and have served the beliefs held dearly by both the  civilizations of the time.

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The Artistic Significance

The jewlery adorning the figure displays the high status of both the woman and the city of Palmyra.  It is easily noticed that much care was put into the creation of this relief.  The relief portrays many Roman and even Greek artistic aspects.  The idea of the god's having a perfect physique and look is displayed strongly in many works from the time period.  The upper class was closely related to the god's, with much nobility claiming to be descendents of them in one form or fashion.  Most likely the statue is a representation of the woman in her younger years to help preserve this idea of perfectionism.  All of her flaws have been erased and she is given the image that she was very well off in life with her elaborate dress and jewlery.  The statue also displays a flawless face for the woman, showing the people's belief that the upper class was closely associated with the depiction of a god's perfection.  The artistic style has a somewhat "Baroque" character due to the influences of the Roman Empire and Hellenistic styles.

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The Archeological Significance

The afterlife is perhaps the most represented part of life in historical pieces of art.  The objects placed in the graves with people were viewed to have special significance to either their life or how they would be used in the afterlife by the deceased.  The words carved on the sculpture possibly describe the woman's status in society or a short description of her life.  They also provide linguists an idea of what the language and grammar was like during that time in history.

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So, what sorts of funerary reliefs would some of today's big wigs have?  Let's take a look at four examples below and see what their reliefs would look like:

Michael Jordan
 Oprah Winfrey
 Michael Jackson
 George W. Bush




For a funerary relief monument, Michael Jordan would have a monument of him holding a basketball. This would be accompanied with another monument of him dunking the ball, like in the picture above, or him in his famous Jordan symbol, pictured to the right. Oprah Winfrey would have an elaborate relief created of her.  In it, she would be standing on the set of The Oprah Winfrey Show dressed in the best designer clothing, waving to the crowd.  She would appear as she does above with perfect hair, make up, and clothing, and looking best she ever has.
 Michael Jackson would have a detailed monument made of him on his tip toes singing into a microphone.  This would allow people to remember him as the King of Pop, all of the music he shared with the world, and wonderful dance moves. If George Bush lived in ancient times, his funerary relief would depict him as he appears now, at the climax of his political career.  Although he has seen younger years, the relief would display him in his youth just as the Relief of No'om.  It would also display President Bush wearing a high-end business suit to showcase his wealth and importance in society.  Lastly, his face would express power, friendliness, and wisdom to leave behind a lasting good impression.



Sources

Ackland Art Museum at the University of North Carolina, Chapel-Hill
Website:  http://www.ackland.org/

Wikipedia
Website:  http://wikipedia.org/

Peter Richardson at the Univeristy of Toronto
Website:  http://www.chass.utoronto.ca/~prchrdsn/religion_and_arch.htm

Images are from:

http://www.thecityreview.com/f02canth.jpg
http://www.indiana.edu/~c414rome/net_id/romesculp/reliefs/circus1.jpg
http://www.ackland.org/