Possible Origin of Fulcrum in the Near East and Emergence in Greek Beds.

Year 2023, Issue: 1, 43 - 96, 31.03.2023

Davut Kaplan

Abstract

Beds used for eating, resting and lounging were produced in different forms in the Near East and Aegean world. The most defining feature of the beds are the foot and headrest. It is understood from the descriptive art and archaeological finds that special importance was given to the beds in the Near East, starting from Egypt. The single headboards of the Egyptian beds are decorated with classical Egyptian mythological iconography and plant motifs. The feets of the beds are in the form of animal legs. In Mesopotamia and the surrounding cultures, some of the feet follow the Egyptian examples, while some of them have a cone-shaped plastic figure called the Assyrian form. The headboards, on the other hand, are inclined in contrast to the Egyptian ones and sometimes turn inwards in the form of 'C'. The Near East is seen as the Eastern Mediterranean production base in furniture production. Ivory decorations are prominent and have a great influence on both Anatolian and Aegean (Greek) furniture. The emergence of the fulcrum, which is the figured or plastic decorated part of the headboard or armrest, which was very popular in the Hellenistic and Roman Periods, poses a problem in terms of origin. After making a short definition of fulcrum, how it emerged was tried to be determined by examining the decorative parts in furniture-bed samples in neighboring geographies and cultures such as Egypt, Mesopotamia, Iran and Anatolia. However, there are limited written sources and almost non-existent archaeological material on the Greek deposits. However, vases seem to be the only source for Greek bed types and details. A general but brief evaluation has been made on the stylistic development and differences of these beds in the light of ancient texts, modern studies and examples preserved in museums that have survived. In particular, the position of the headboard, armrests on the bed, materials and figures of the beds were evaluated together. As can be understood from the development and use of fulcrums, which have gained their classical form by being decorated with figures over time, it is seen that they were copied hundreds of years with very little stylistic change and even directly from the Near East in their plain form at the end of the Archaic period. Fulcrums are dependent on the old but more original in terms of form in the Hellenistic Period, which includes original and quality examples. In the Roman Period, the fulcrum, which was directly copied from the Hellenistic type, changed its form over time to have a higher and longer form. However, it is seen that Roman types are used much more widely in large geographies, even if they are sometimes devoid of decoration.

Keywords

Ancient Near East, symposion, ancient furniture, ancient bed

FULCRUM'UN YAKIN DOĞU'DAKİ OLASI KÖKENİ VE YUNAN YATAKLARINDA ORTAYA ÇIKIŞI

Abstract

Yemek, dinlenmek ve uzanmak için kullanılan yataklar Yakın Doğu ve Ege dünyasında farklı formda üretilmişlerdir. Yatakların en belirleyici özelliği ayak ve başlık kısımlarıdır. Yakın Doğu’da Mısır’dan başlayarak yataklara özel önem verildiği tasvirli sanat ve arkeolojik buluntular ile anlaşılmaktadır. Mısır yataklarının tek başlıkları klasik mısır mitolojik ikonografi ve bitki motifleri ile süslüdür. Yatakların ayakları hayvan bacağı formundadır. Mezopotamya ve çevre kültürlerde ise ayakların bazıları Mısır örneklerini izlerken bazıları Asur formu denen kozalak biçimli plastik figürlüdür. Yatak başlık kısımları ise Mısır’ın tersine eğimli ve bazen ‘C’ formunda içe döner. Yakın Doğu mobilya üretiminde Doğu Akdeniz üretim üssü olarak görülmektedir. Fildişi dekorasyonlar ön plandadır ve hem Anadolu hem de Ege (Yunan) mobilyaları üzerine büyük etkisi vardır. Hellenistik ve Roma Dönemi’nde çok popüler olan yatak başlık veya kol dayama yerinin figürlü ya da plastik bezemeli kısmı olan fulcrumun ortaya çıkışı köken açısından bir sorun oluşturmaktadır. Fulcrumun kısa tanımı yapıldıktan sonra nasıl ortaya çıktığı Mısır, Mezopotamya, İran ve Anadolu gibi komşu coğrafya ve kültürlerde mobilya-yatak örneklerinde bezemeli aksam ele alınmış gelişimi saptanmaya çalışılmıştır. Fakat Yunan yatakları konusunda sınırlı yazılı kaynak ve neredeyse yok denecek kadar az arkeolojik malzeme vardır. Buna rağmen vazolar, Yunan yatak tipleri ve detayları konusunda tek kaynak görünmektedir. Bu yataklarının stilistik gelişimi ve farkları üzerine antik metinler, modern çalışmalar ve günümüze gelmiş müzelerde korunan örnekler ışığında genel fakat özet bir değerlendirme yapılmıştır. Özellikle yatakların başlık, kol dayama yerlerinin konumu, duruşları, malzemeleri ve figürleri birlikte değerlendirilmiştir. Zamanla figürlerle süslenerek klasik formuna kavuşan fulcrumların gelişimlerinden ve kullanımlarından da anlaşıldığı gibi yüzlerce yıl çok az bir üslup değişimiyle ve hatta doğrudan Yakın Doğu’dan sade biçimiyle Arkaik dönem sonunda kopya edildiği görülmektedir. Fulcrumlar, özgün ve kaliteli örnekler içeren Hellenistik Dönem’de form açısından eskiye bağımlı fakat daha özgündür. Roma Dönemi’nde ise Hellenistik tipten doğrudan kopya edilen fulcrum zamanla formunu değiştirerek daha yüksek ve uzun forma sahip olur. Fakat bazen bezemeden yoksun da olsalar Roma tiplerinin geniş coğrafyalarda çok daha yaygın şekilde kullanıldığı görülür.

Keywords

Eski Yakın Doğu, symposion, antik mobilya, antik yatak, fulcrum.

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