Art History: The Battle Of David And Goliath Silver Plate

“The Battle of David and Goliath Silver Plate”
Your Names
Art 4024.: Course Description
October 25th 2017
The Battle of David and Goliath Silver Plate
The Battle of David and Goliath silver plates signify an important Christian historical event ever documented. The battle had religious significance because it regained Byzantine land which encompassed Jerusalem and other sacred Christian religious sites. This essay will evaluate and discuss The Battle of David and Goliath, the largest silver plate among the six that are preserved at Metropolitan Museum. This plate depicts different scenes captured from the early life of David. The collection is a cast, hammered, engraved, punched and chased piece of Byzantine artwork discovered in Karavas Cyprus in 1902. It is believed that the nine silver-plates, which are dated 629-630, were made in Constantinople. The essay will evaluate and discuss the iconographic context of the artwork. The analysis will encompass placement of the artwork within the appropriate historical context, general description of the artwork and formal analysis of the artwork’s form, composition, scale, materials, techniques and current condition. Lastly, the paper will compare the Battle of David and Goliath silver plate with other works of art, highlighting its significance and special qualities. Although the Battle of David and Goliath is considered a classical artwork due to its style, form and composition, the largest of the six silver plates reflects exceptional skilled silversmiths of Byzantine Empire. The collection of the nine silver plates has been separated with six of them at Metropolitan museum while the rest are preserved at the Cyprus Museum.
The Battle of David and Goliath is considered a Byzantine work of art that shows the influence of ancient Roman art. The nine piece collection was discovered in northern Cyprus in 1902. The silver plates had engraved images depicting scenes from the life of King David, while the largest of the 9 silver plates depicted his battle with the Philistine giant, Goliath. Dated 629-630, this plate is elegant, with low relief scenes depicting David’s early life. According to Norris, it is Emperor Heraclius who ordered the creation of the silver plates as evident from the control stamps that can be spotted at the back the plates. Similarly, other identical plates were collected in Antioch, depicting the same form and style.
Apparently Emperor Heraclius commissioned their creation to celebrate his victory over the Persians in a war that lasted from between 628 BC to 629 BC. Heraclius victory is linked to David’s battle with Goliath due to the fact that both involve men who fought single-handedly. Moreover, both men defeated and beheaded their arch enemies. It is notable that Heraclius’ victory over the Persians led to the recapture of the city of Jerusalem. During the warfare, Emperor Heraclius battled Razatis, the Persian general, in a single-handed fight. This incident is evoked in the portrayal of the biblical King David’s defeat of Goliath. In addition, the other smaller silver plates also have imperial imagery on them, in which ceremonial scenes from the life of King David are set before the arcade...