Introduction to Presentation of Ramayana in Greek and Etruscan Art, Parts I-III
The above links are meant to give the viewer and reader a formal treatment of this topic of the Indian Ramayana and its influence on the ancient Etruscans. This blog was originally meant for a more informal treatment of this topic, and not every statement or opinion of mine on this blog was thoroughly backed by objective facts. However, the youtube videos above are intended as an objective and meticulous examination of the evidence for Indian or South Asian influence on Ionians and Etruscans during the second half of the 6th century BCE (550-500 BCE).
Summary of Introduction to Presentation (Three videos in the playlist):
A detailed introduction that previews and summarizes the key conclusions made in the main presentation of the South Asian Indian legend of Rama in Archaic Greek and Etruscan Art (6th Century BCE).
Summary of Main Presentation (Nine videos in the playlist):
During the third quarter of the 6th century BCE, Ionian artists specializing in painted terracottas and pottery traveled from the western coast of Asia Minor and started a workshop in the ancient Etruscan city of Caere. These artists brought knowledge of not only Greek myths to Etruria, but also the Asian Indian myth of the Valmiki Ramayana. This epic Ramayana tells the story of the warrior and king Rama, who rescues his wife Sita from the clutches of the demon Ravana. Episodes from this Indian myth are featured on two major Greco-Etruscan artworks, the Campana plaques in the Louvre and the Caeretan hydria in Boston’s Museum of Fine Arts. In this presentation I will mainly focus on one specific episode of the Ramayana - Rama’s golden deer hunt and Ravana’s abduction of Sita - which is depicted in the latter work of art. Through comparisons with Indian medieval art and an examination of the analyses of classical scholars, including art historians, we will observe that the front and back sides of this Caeretan hydria in Boston depict the golden deer episode of Rama and Sita from the Indian Ramayana, not an episode from Greek epics such as the Iliad or Odyssey or any other Greek myth. We will conclude with a brief explanation of how and why the Indian legend of Rama traveled from northern India to Ionia and Etruria via the communication networks of the Persian Empire that began around 550-525 BCE. Finally, in conjunction with the Caeretan hydria in Boston, the Campana plaques, by depicting Rama’s exile and his heroic journey to rescue his wife Sita, summarize most of the major events in the oldest kernel of the Indian epic Ramayana by the poet Valmiki, which dates to at least the middle of the sixth century BCE.
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