Asher Zeytz

Professor Carol Schuler

VIST105 – Global Foundations

November 26th, 2023

“Beneath the Waves” Exhibition Proposal

The idea of mysterious sea creatures has existed in world culture for ages.

The ocean depths are inherently inhabitable for humans, yet the sea has served as a

source of food, travel, and trade for many civilizations. The dissonance between

how beneficial access to the ocean was for a culture and how unexplorable and

mysterious the sea was contributed to the creation of tales of sea gods and

monsters of incredible power. The interest in giant bizarre beings lurking

underwater is well-documented in mythologies of various cultures worldwide: the

Philippine sea god Bakunawa, Scylla and Charybdis from the Odyssey, the

creatures Ōnamazu and Umibōzu from Japanese mythology - the list can go on and

on. While such legends were more prevalent in peoples inhabiting sea coasts, some

examples of strange sea-dwelling monsters in cultures remote from the ocean still

exist.

This is why I am proposing an art exhibition centered around the theme of

mythical sea creatures. The display will feature eight artworks from all around the

world, the earliest piece created in the 6th century BCE and the latest in the 15th

century. The primary purpose of this exhibition is to present art pieces representing
sea beasts from various cultures around the world. The display will showcase the

diversity of world cultures and the importance of sea-related legends for each of

them - all in one room of the museum. Since the exhibition emphasizes the

multiculturality in art history, the art pieces will be arranged in geographical order

from east to west.

Annotations to each of the featured artworks

While the thematic center of this

painting (fig. 1) is the Buddhist deity

Avalokiteshvara, the imagery of sea

monsters is still present in the piece:

they are depicted at the bottom of the

painting, worshipping and bringing

offerings to the god among human

devotees led by the dragon king. The

inclusion of sea beasts in the

composition signifies the equity of all

living creatures before the deity, which

is an imminent concept in Buddhism.

Fig. 1. Water-moon Avalokiteshvara. Korean.

1st half of the 14th century. The Metropolitan

Museum of Art.

https://images.metmuseum.org/CRDImages/as/original/DP-15580-002.jpg?
_gl=1*1vv67nv*_ga*MzM1MDU3MjI0LjE3MDEwMjk3Mjk.*_ga_Y0W8DGNBTB*MTcwMTEwNzU

yMy45LjEuMTcwMTEwNzgzMS4wLjAuMA.

This dish (fig.2) was created in the ancient region of Gandhara and features a

relief of Eros riding a sea beast, as the title suggests. The visual elements of the

dish showcase how international trade with India and the Hellenistic world

impacted Gandharan visual vocabulary and stylistic features. The most obvious

example of this is the depiction of Roman Eros.

Fig. 2. Dish with Winged Eros Riding a Lion-Headed Sea Monster. Pakistan (ancient region of

Gandhara). 1st century BCE. The Metropolitan Museum of Art.

https://images.metmuseum.org/CRDImages/as/original/DP278813.jpg?

_gl=1*1p5dsqy*_ga*MzM1MDU3MjI0LjE3MDEwMjk3Mjk.*_ga_Y0W8DGNBTB*MTcwMTAzODE

4OS4yLjEuMTcwMTAzOTA1MC4wLjAuMA.

The artwork (fig. 3) illustrates a scene from a Persian legend where the hero

Rustam defends himself from a sea monster. Similarly to the dish from Gandhara

(fig. 2), the aquatic beast here is also depicted with a lion’s head. This can be

explained by the geographic location of Gandhara and Iran since both had

relatively limited access to the sea coast (Gandhara had none), so the sea did not

play an essential role in either's development. It also emphasizes the mythical

nature of the beasts.

Fig. 3. Abu’l Qasim Firdausi.

"Rustam is Thrown into the Sea

by the Div Akvan" Folio from a

Shahnama (Book of Kings) of

Firdausi. Iranian. 1330-40. The

Metropolitan Museum of Art.

https://images.metmuseum.org/CRDImages/is/original/DP108566.jpg?

_gl=1*14xvnt0*_ga*MzM1MDU3MjI0LjE3MDEwMjk3Mjk.*_ga_Y0W8DGNBTB*MTcwMTA0MTk

0MC4zLjAuMTcwMTA0MTk0MC4wLjAuMA.

This Greek amphora (fig. 4) depicts the mythical demigod hero Heracles

fighting a sea beast – a motif prevalent in Attica. The amphora uses heavily

detailed line art and intricate decorative floral and geometric patterns. It is a classic

example of black-figure pottery.

Fig. 4. Terracotta

neck-amphora (jar).

Greek, Attic. 510

BCE. The

Metropolitan

Museum of Art.

https://images.metmuseum.org/CRDImages/gr/original/DP232633.jpg?
_gl=1*fcry7g*_ga*MzM1MDU3MjI0LjE3MDEwMjk3Mjk.*_ga_Y0W8DGNBTB*MTcwMTA1MTE2

Ni41LjEuMTcwMTA1MTIxMi4wLjAuMA.

This drinking cup (fig. 5) belongs to Etruscan culture. The similarity to Greek

pottery (fig. 4) is evident in the shape and colors of the pieces. However, instead of

focusing on lines, the Etruscan piece emphasizes the monster's shape and

silhouette. This shows that, despite Greek influence, Etruscan art still had distinct

stylistic features. Another notable thing about the imagery of sea creatures (both

natural and mythical) in Etruscan culture is that it was closely tied to themes of

death: Etruscans believed that the journey from the world of living to the

Underworld involved a sea voyage. Sea beasts accompanied and protected the

newly deceased.

Fig. 5. Terracotta kantharos

(drinking cup). Etruscan. Late

4th century BCE. The Metropolitan Museum of Art.

https://images.metmuseum.org/CRDImages/gr/original/DP252110.jpg?

_gl=1*1kjkmnd*_ga*MzM1MDU3MjI0LjE3MDEwMjk3Mjk.*_ga_Y0W8DGNBTB*MTcwMTEwNzU

yMy45LjEuMTcwMTEwNzU1MS4wLjAuMA.

This plate belongs to the Mayan culture (fig. 6). It centers the composition

around Chahk, the Mayan god of rain. The deity is surrounded by aquatic motifs

and hieroglyphs for “sea.” While the god can be described as anthropomorphic, it

is still clear that he is not a human. Three branch-like parts are growing from his

body and morphing into other creatures. It is unclear if the beings are mythical or

real because of the heavily stylized form of figures.

Fig. 6. Tripod Plate with Mythological Scene. Maya. 7th-8th century. The Metropolitan Museum of

Art. https://images.metmuseum.org/CRDImages/ao/original/DP-23101-003.jpg?

_gl=1*1as6s0*_ga*MzM1MDU3MjI0LjE3MDEwMjk3Mjk.*_ga_Y0W8DGNBTB*MTcwMTA0NzM1

NS40LjEuMTcwMTA0ODU0OC4wLjAuMA.

This is an example of ceramic pieces made by the Moche people (fig. 7).

Depicting sea creatures in ceramics and sculpture was a common practice for the

tribe, probably because they inhabited a stripe of land along the Pacific coast. The

manner of depicting a sea monster in this artwork is particularly interesting

because, aside from the human-like limbs, it resembles a fish significantly more

than pieces from other cultures. This might be a sign of appreciation for nature by

the tribe because representing something accurately requires close observation of

the object.
Fig. 7. Stirrup Spout Bottle with Sea Monster. Moche (Peru). 1st–6th century. The Metropolitan

Museum of Art. https://images.metmuseum.org/CRDImages/ao/original/1983.546.18.JPG?

_gl=1*1le9nnn*_ga*MzM1MDU3MjI0LjE3MDEwMjk3Mjk.*_ga_Y0W8DGNBTB*MTcwMTA0NzM

1NS40LjEuMTcwMTA0NzY1My4wLjAuMA.

This carved wooden figure (fig. 8) originates from the Okvik culture of the Old

Bering Sea. Sculptural works of the Okvik people predominantly consisted of

anthropomorphic figures, so this carving is as close as it gets to a mythical aquatic

creature. The sculpture represents a being that is half person and half fish (or sea

mammal). It is suggested that the elongated opening in the center symbolizes the

boundary between physical and spirit worlds and the transition from one to

another. Associating transcendence to

a spiritual world with imagery of

water and aquatic creatures is a

concept relatively similar to that of

Etruscans.

Fig. 8. Transformational Figure. Okvik,

Native American. 200 BCE-100 CE. The

Metropolitan Museum of Art. https://images.metmuseum.org/CRDImages/ad/original/DP-15102-

032.jpg?

_gl=1*1ekotnu*_ga*MzM1MDU3MjI0LjE3MDEwMjk3Mjk.*_ga_Y0W8DGNBTB*MTcwMTA0NzM

1NS40LjEuMTcwMTA0ODcyNS4wLjAuMA.