Victorian-era Olympus

Author: (English) William Gomperz
Publisher:
Publish Date: 2006-04-01
Features: The paintings of Alma-Tadema depicting ancient Egyptian and other ancient themes appeared in an era when people were eager to travel to ancient ruins. The history of British tourism on the European continent is long-standing, and it has now been enriched with new content. Greece was clearly added to the original destinations, which were primarily France, Switzerland, and Italy. This trend stemmed from more than one reason: First, the British had renewed interest in ancient Greek artifacts, a contribution from the Earl of Elgin (and other connoisseurs); second, there was a sentiment of sympathy in Britain for Greece's struggle for independence. The British, who revered classical culture and loved freedom, seemed to see Greece's fight as a matter of life and death. Sir Byron, who died in Missolonghi, Greece, while supporting the Greek cause, stirred the British public's empathy for Greece. Subsequently, British travelers to Athens were treated as honored guests, as if draped in Byron's cloak, and took pride in being seen as liberators. In all places that cherished freedom, people sympathized with Greece. Like the British, French Romantic painters also firmly stood on the side of the Greeks. However, when it came to foreign landscapes, the tastes of British and French painters could be said to be almost equally favorable toward both Greeks and Turks. The term "equally favorable" is used because they considered Turks to also possess a foreign charm. The oppressors, the Turks, were detested, but they were also fascinating in many ways. Love for Greece led to an interest in Turkish attire and customs. Just as the Crusaders intentionally or unintentionally imitated the ancient Arabs, the Romantics and liberals of the 19th century grew fond of Turkish antiques and war trophies, Turkish scimitars and veils, while Turkish hats and Turkish long pipes (tchibouks) underwent peculiar transformations, becoming typical hobbies for scholars of Eastern culture. It is difficult to separate the allure of the "East" from the glory of Greece's past. Alexandre-Gabriel Decamps, a French painter sometimes called the "inventor" of the term "East," initially mentioned the "East" to celebrate its decline: He was sent to the eastern Mediterranean to assist the painter Gameray in studying the setting of the Battle of Navarino, where fleets from Britain, France, and Russia had defeated those of Turkey and Egypt in 1826. Decamps lived in Smyrna for about three years before returning to France, and thereafter he painted based on his memories of that life until his death. He did not create works commemorating the Battle of Navarino but rather depicted the streets of Smyrna and the daily life of the Asian Turks in his memories. These works inspired other painters to imitate him, and people who were not painters also flocked to the places he had visited. It is easy to mix the concept of "ancient" with contemporary impressions of the "Near East." It is entirely understandable that the Mediterranean world has always seemed inseparable. The same sun shines on all the lands surrounding this inland sea. Readers of ancient texts, like the ancients themselves, could hardly distinguish between the gods of antiquity. Is not the Egyptian goddess Isis the same as the Venus of Cyprus, the Athena of Athens, the Diana of Crete, the Proserpine of Sicily, and the Bellona of Rome? Interest in Greece sparked interest in Egypt. Experts on Napoleon, in their explorations along the Nile, drew attention to ancient Egypt. This was much like how the Elgin's exploration of the Acropolis drew attention to ancient Greece. These explorations carried a dual meaning of understanding classical culture and foreign lands, and the mosques and temples, the bustling life of the Arabs, and the numerous royal tombs further enhanced Egypt's charm. The scope of British travel on the European continent expanded even further.