Temple of Poseidon

Accession Number
1984/2.58.1

Title
Temple of Poseidon

Artist(s)
Mary Peck

Artist Nationality
American (North American)

Object Creation Date
1979; printed 1982

Medium & Support
gelatin silver print on paper

Dimensions
5 1/8 in x 4 3/16 in (13.02 cm x 10.64 cm);14 in x 11 in (35.56 cm x 27.94 cm)

Credit Line
Gift of Mr. and Mrs. David C. Ruttenberg through the courtesy of the Ruttenberg Arts Foundation

Subject matter
This is a photograph of the Temple of Poseidon in Sounion, Greece; the first of eight photographs in Mary Peck’s portfolio, The Temples of Greece which is comprised of black-and-white photographs depicting dramatic Greek landscapes, each accented by ancient ruins. The rich tonal ranges in the prints reflect the majesty of the expansive scenes. As described in the introduction of the portfolio, in this photograph, “the promontory pushes out like an animal, the sea swims around it, the sky hovers, and the far-off island sails across the water in the sun sheen. The temple appears on the headland, a man-made embodiment of divinity; it sets the human scale of the god in relation to his presence in the natural forces.” -Vincent J. Scully, 1982

Physical Description
This photograph depicts a temple atop a cliff; the rockface descends to water on the left. The sky is full of clouds, another land formation is visible in the distance.

Primary Object Classification
Photograph

Collection Area
Photography

Rights
If you are interested in using an image for a publication, please visit http://umma.umich.edu/request-image for more information and to fill out the online Image Rights and Reproductions Request Form.

Keywords
Ancient Greek (culture or style)
cliffs
clouds
modern and contemporary art
monuments
mythology (literary genre)
ruins
seascapes
temples (buildings)
water

4 Related Resources

Monuments and Memorials
(Part of 4 Learning Collections)
Nature in Photography
(Part of 3 Learning Collections)
Religious Buildings
(Part of 2 Learning Collections)
Su19 Tarbet - GTBOOKS 201 : Parageographies
(Part of: 2019 Summer Study Sets)

& Author Notes

All Rights Reserved