Скачать или смотреть The Metropolitan Museum of Art - The Art of Cypress

Something has to be said about Cypriot Art: This must have been one happy culture. I can’t think of any other sculptures with such smiling faces. Even when they are not smiling, they’re smirking.

In 1872, just two years after its founding—275 crates of objects were purchased and brought to the Metropolitan Museum of Art by Luigi Palma di Cesnola, who soon became its first director. This collection, with over 6,000 works, documents the art of Cyprus from ca. 3000 B.C. through ca. A.D. 300 in all major media—terracottas, bronzes, gems, glass, silver and gold plate, and jewelry. The distinction of the collection, however, lies in the stone sculptures that are unequalled in any other institution.