Mosaico de Alexandre (Alexander Mosaic / Mosaico di Alessandro), Itália

 

Mosaico de Alexandre (Alexander Mosaic / Mosaico di Alessandro), Itália 
Museu Arqueológico Nacional de Nápoles, Itália
Mosaico - Circa 150 a.C.

Texto em inglês:
The mosaic, the largest in the House of the Faun in Pompeii, made with the use of about one million tesserae, depicts the battle of Issus fought between Alexander the Great and Darius III in 333 BC; it marked the end of the Persian Empire.
The mosaic, on the left side, shows Alexander who, astride his horse Bucephalus, leads his men against the fleeing Persians. Opposite Alexander towers the figure of Darius on his retreating war chariot. Between the two is a Persian prince who displays his loyalty by using his body to shield his king, while a soldier offers him his own horse, thus condemning himself to certain death.
The use of opus vermiculatum (a technique of mosaic which uses very small tesserae) enabled the craftsman to render all the effects of luminosity, the changes in colour, the details of the armour and the faces, and even the moods.
The Alexander Mosaic was found during the excavation of Pompeii in 1831 in the “Casa del Fauno” (House of the Faun). Today it is one of the most famous Roman mosaics. The mosaic is thought by many to depict the Battle of Issus between Alexander the Great and the Persian king Darius III in the year 333 BC. Others however believe that the tableau shows the battle of Gaugamela in the year 331 BC, where Alexander the Great and Darius clashed once again.
The picture shows Alexander storming in at the head of his troops from the left edge, attempting to engage Darius in battle. But the Persian has already turned to flee, with only his eyes directed towards Alexander.
The Alexander Mosaic, independently of its fitting in the “Casa del Fauno”, was created in the 3rd century BC and based on an original no longer in existence. The original may have been the work of Philoxenos of Eretrea from the 4th century BC. There is also a belief that a Hellenistic painting was used as the model. The mosaic shows the magnificence of Greek monumental painting and four-colour painting.
Today, the original Alexander Mosaic is on display in the National Museum of Archaeology in Naples. An exact copy – identical in shape, size, colour and materials used – was created after several years of work by the Scuola Bottega del Mosaico di Ravenna and is now installed in Pompeii.
Interpretation of the mosaic:
If one considers the conditions and starting position from which Alexander launched his attack on the vastly superior Persian empire, the question of how Alexander achieved victory over the mighty Persian army arises again and again. This victory came as such a surprise to the self-confident Persians that Darius, for example, had brought members of his family with him to Issus, including his heavily-pregnant wife, who then fell into the hands of Alexander.
The mosaic provides us with an answer to this question, representing not just an artistic masterpiece, but also an historical insight into the chain of events leading to Alexander’s victory.
The middle of the picture is compositionally and morally dominated” (Curtius) by Darius.
Eyes widened in horror, he looks to the left, as a kinsman of his bodyguard is pierced by Alexander’s spear. The dying man’s right hand is still gripping the deadly weapon, as though he wished to pull it out of his body, but his body is already collapsing onto the bloody corpse of his black horse. The sympathetic but uselessly-extended right hand and the uncomprehending stare of Darius are directed towards the fatally struck man, who has thrown himself between him and the oncoming Alexander. The gaze and gesture of Darius are however also directed towards the approaching Alexander. The Persian king is not himself fighting, and is therefore already the passive victim of the general horror.
In contrast, the Macedonian king is actively directing the battle. From astride his Bucephalus, he strikes the enemy through the body with his spear, without so much as a glance at his victim. His widened eye is trained on Darius; even the Gorgon on his breastplate turns her view sideways to the horrified enemy, as if she wanted to increase the suggestive power of this eye.
The portrait of Alexander corresponds to the so-called Lysippean type, which includes for example the Pergamon Head. Alexander is not idealised here in the otherwise frequent form: with long curls and full, soft features as the incarnation of Zeus, the sun-god Helios or Apollo […]. His head appears rather more gaunt, with tautly shaped cheeks, marked by suggested or deeply-carved wrinkles and with short hair barely covering his ear. Both types, the realistic and the idealising, do admittedly show the parting of the forelock characteristic of Alexander - here as short, unmanageable strands, in the deifying variation as upwardly radiating pairs of locks. A later, but unmistakeable echo of this hairstyle can be found in the consciously stylised, characteristic forelock of Augustus.
Also on account of the damage to the mosaic, there are few Macedonians – recognisable by their bonnet-shaped helmets – around Alexander The majority of the picture, almost three-quarters of the total surface, belongs to the Persians. The Persians are wearing the Central Asian scale or plate armour. This covers the entire body and is made of squares of iron or bronze rods, which were connected at the top, bottom and sides by cords. Painted in radical foreshortening, a Persian in front of Darius seeks to subdue a shying horse, which may belong to the person who has fallen to the ground beside him. The face of the dying man, who has just been run over by Darius´s chariot, is reflected in his shield and is the only thing that looks at the beholder.
The composition line of the three Persians, sloping from left to right, the man pierced by Alexander, the horse subduer (5) and the dying man, follows the internal and external movement of the image. The same line is repeated to the right of the charioteer’s whip over the reins to the legs of the horses, who swing the king´s chariot wildly to the right to flee. At its midpoint and centre, depicting the group of the horse subduer, Darius and the charioteer, which is highlighted by the round of the chariot wheel, the picture shows the decisive turning point of the battle.
The mastery of the artist, who chose to depict this “turning point” in the battle, becomes clear when compared for example with the "Battle of Alexander" by Altdorfer: there, an already-fleeing Darius is simply pursued by Alexander, a comparatively simple and unexciting theme. Here, in contrast, the many spears pointing diagonally left and upwards and Darius´s posture still reflect the Persian line of attack. This line of attack is literally pierced in the upper body of the man who has been pierced by the dynamically contrasting line emanating from Alexander. The angled left arm of this Persian and his leg already record the movement in the opposite direction, meeting then with Alexander’s spear directly in the centre of the image and ending in the whipping arm of the charioteer, who triggers the flight. The three spears at the right edge of the picture signal this escape, which will soon swing around the other spears still directed towards Alexander. The movement of these enemy lines in the opposite direction is also repeated suggestively in the trunk and branches of the bare tree.
The answer that the picture gives to the question of Alexander’s superiority could be summarised along the following lines: The unflinching, determined audacity of Alexander, a posture reflected in his widened eye and the piercing spears, has such a horrifying and overwhelming effect on his opponents that they flee in panic. However the representation grants honour and a human dimension to this opponent, as can be seen in the gesture of Darius and the three Persians fighting in front of him. Sympathy and regard is also shown to the vanquished, as in the “Persians” of Aeschylus. The answer in the picture corresponds to our historical knowledge: at Issus and again at Gaugamela, Alexander decided the battle by an unusual tactical manoeuvre. He charged each time in a circle of his mounted Hetairoi, a type of elite troop, into enemy lines, using this surprise attack to create resistance and so appearing before Darius completely unexpectedly, causing him to flee in panic. Alexander treated the prisoners with a level of care and regard to which they as Persians were completely unaccustomed. The picture, therefore, does not reflect a definite battle by Alexander, but rather it reconstructs to a certain extent the typology of his victory.
The Battle of Issus:
In the year 333 BC, Alexander the Great and King Darius III crossed swords for the first time. The official war objective of Macedonia was revenge. Revenge on the Persians for the destructive campaign against Greece, which had taken place 150 years previously. Unofficially, but entirely openly, Alexander was using the campaign in his quest for fame and conquest. Before the battle, however, Alexander suffered for eight weeks with a fever and was cared for by the family doctor. He sent Parmenion, his commander of infantry and the Peloponnesian cavalry, on ahead. He rode with 15,000 men to the Syrian border to block off access to the Persians. During this period, Memnon, Darius’s prized general, died from a severe illness, with the result that the King had to call up the council of war, whereupon he decided to engage Alexander in open combat.
Alexander moved with his army first to Issus and then further along the coast road. He expected to meet with the enemy at some point here. Darius also wanted to meet him on this plain near Issus, which appeared favourable to him. Instead he was forced to continue marching with his army along an easterly road to the city of Issus, leaving behind the favourable plain, as he was unable to support his army permanently at that place. This meant that both armies marched past each other in parallel, separated by a mountain range.
Darius had heard from the wounded Greek soldiers left behind there that Alexander had taken the coast road with his army. Now the king followed him with his army. When Alexander in turn found out that the enemy was to his back, he ordered his army to return quickly to Issus.
The battlefield, on the plains of Issus, was bordered on one side by the mountain range and by the Mediterranean on the other. The numerical superiority of the Persians was therefore considerably limited. There are many estimates as to the numbers in the Persian army, but it is accepted that it was a maximum of 100,000 men strong. On the Persian side, the heavy cavalry positioned itself on the right wing near the coast. The flat plains were extremely favourable to the cavalry. Heavily-armed Greek soldiers arrived in the middle. To the left were the Kardaks (Iranian infantry), and the left mountain slope was occupied by lightly-armed units. Darius III positioned himself with his chariot and mounted guard behind the middle of the front. His plan was to tip the balance with the heavy cavalry on the right wing. Alexander’s right flank would be captured with it, together with the Hetairoi cavalry. The centre was formed by the Macedonian phalanx. Peloponnesian horsemen, under the control of Permenion, formed the left flank on the coast. Shortly before the start of the battle Alexander ordered the Thessalian cavalry, who were positioned on the right, to go over to Parmenion on the left flank, so that this would be strengthened against the Persian mounted attack. His tactic was to pin down the enemy with the Macedonian infantry and to tear open gaps. The gaps would provide an opportunity for a mounted attack on the Persian centre.
During the battle, the Macedonian phalanx had problems asserting itself against the Greek Hoplites. Parmenion’s left flank was also penetrated. But the chance presented itself at the right moment. A gap appeared in the front and, despite bitter resistance from the Persian infantry, Alexander fought through to the head to King Darius. Darius recognised the danger of encirclement, turned his chariot and fled from the battlefield, although the battle was far from over. The phalanx had to traverse the Pinaros river, with its strong currents, which in turn tore large gaps in their ranks. Darius’s Greek soldiers took advantage of this and caused significant losses to the approaching phalanx. On the coastal side, the Persian cavalry continued to strongly harry the Greek infantry and the Peloponnesian horsemen. Using crescent-shaped pivot movements, Alexander’s cavalry helped the embattled Greeks in their critical position. He also attacked the flanks of the enemy centre. Dispirited by the flight of the king, the Persian army retreated with all its soldiers. The number of dead on the side of Alexander the Great is put at 450 men, with approximately ten times that number wounded. There were thousands of times more dead and injured on the side of the Persian army. Darius had to leave his mother and wife behind following his flight. Unexpectedly, Alexander treated them as queens and even allowed them to acknowledge such honours. Also among the prisoners were Persian nobility, such as Barsine, who Alexander later married. In addition, 3,000 talents in cash and the entire treasury in Damascus were looted, which was sufficient to pay all outstanding soldiers’ pay owed by Alexander and to pay the army for another whole year.
The Battle of Gaugamela:
On October 1st, 331 BC, one of the decisive battles in world history took place. The battle of Gaugamela formed the highlight of Alexander’s campaign. After Darius III lost the battle in his first encounter with Alexander the Great at Issus (333 BC), in order to avert another war, he offered Alexander the surrender of all areas west of the Euphrates, a high ransom for the harem captured by Alexander at Issus and the hand of his daughter in marriage. But Alexander refused. His goal was to conquer the Achaemenid Empire.
One day, scouts reported that Darius had begun to assemble a massive army by the Euphrates. Darius was now ready to lead the decisive battle, but Alexander wanted to wait until Darius had recruited the very last Persian. In this way, Alexander wanted to ensure that a further battle would not be necessary.
Alexander’s army consisted of 40,000 infantry men and 7,000 horsemen. Compared to the Persians, he was at a clear numerical disadvantage. But his army consisted predominantly of hugely experienced veterans, and the short chains of command would be useful in battle. His army consisted of the Hetairoi cavalry, who were armed with spears. The Hypaspists, similarly-armed to the Greek Hoplites, but not as limited in their movement. Alexander also had the Pezhetairoi, who were armed with extremely long spears and the usual lightly-armed troops in his army. Alexander’s father Phillip had assembled a mighty army from a slack original squad, on which he could now rely. His army was joined by many allies and soldiers from Greece and the entire Balkans. Alexander had also learnt from his father to only use the infantry for defensive purposes and to wait for the right moment to then launch a personally-led attack with his heavy Hetairoi cavalry. As with the Battle of Issus, this attack should also help to him to victory.
After Darius’s defeat at Issus, he had almost two years to build up an army. In order to achieve numerical superiority, he recruited every man of fighting age in his empire. But many of these men were poorly or barely educated, which in the end led to a mass panic. The army of the king consisted of many different tribes mixed together. Foot soldiers and horsemen from Mesopotamia, Babylonia and from the coasts of the Persian Gulf. Darius’s army comprised at least 250,000 men, among them 30,000 Greek soldiers, 12,000 heavy Bactrian horsemen. Unlike the majority of the army, the cavalry was made up of many experienced fighters, its core, the kara (general call to arms), was permanently armed. The Indians made 15 war elephants available for the battle. And 200 of the feared scythed chariots were to be used. These were supposed to break up the Macedonian Phalanx during the battle. In addition there was also the royal guard, including soldier units of Greek Hoplites. After Darius had assembled his army, he scouted around for a suitable battlefield. He wanted to make use of his numerical superiority, with the result that Alexander would be forced into the wide plains of the Tigris to do battle. The king ordered one of his officers to watch for the approach of the enemy, but to let him pass by undisturbed. Alexander was to cross the Euphrates with his troops unhindered. He himself headed from Babylon in a northern direction. At Arbela the king pitched a camp, from there he positioned his army in the plains between the Tigris and the Zab. Darius had these plains cleared of all unevenness, so that the scythed chariots could be used to full effect. Alexander’s goal was the centre of Mesopotamia, at Thapsakos he led his troops across the Euphrates and then turned to the north-east. As soon as it was reported that the Persian army had arrived for battle just a few days’ march to the south, in the plains of Gaugamela, Alexander set up camp immediately.
On account of his numerical advantage, the favourable terrain, the scythed chariots, war elephants and fighting power, Darius was very sure of victory, but the Persians feared a night attack by the Macedonians and therefore ordered all men to remain awake, in order to be prepared for an attack. Parmenion planned such an attack, but was restrained by Alexander. He prepared his plan of attack during the night an allowed his men to rest. The plan included some improvements to the formation. As Alexander had to face the size of the Persian frontline with an encirclement of the Macedonian flank, he positioned a second troop division behind the phalanx of sarissa-bearers. These were instructed to double back during the encirclement, so that a square shape would be created. The Persian front consisted mainly of cavalry, and was supported to the right and left by scythed chariots. Between these were some individual infantry. However these were mainly concentrated with the elephants in the middle. As at Issus, Darius stood with his guard behind the centre, with the Babylonian infantry behind him for additional protection. This hierarchy brought the formation of the Persians to a length of 3 – 4 km. Alexander positioned his phalanx of sarissa-bearers in the centre and allowed the Hetairoi cavalry, led by himself, to take up the right flank. Alexander positioned the flexible Hypaspists between the horsemen and the phalanx. His left flank was occupied with the Thessalian and Greek cavalry, under the command of Parmenion. Behind the phalanx he positioned as planned a troop of lightly-armed cavalry and infantry. Alexander’s plan was very audacious. He wanted to lure the heavy Persian cavalry away from the centre by attacking the flanks, in order to then lead a mounted attack on Darius III through a hole in the centre.
The battle began tentatively at first, then Alexander tried to find a favourable attacking point against the scythed chariots through an improvised movement. He extended and thinned out the right flank. The king expected a lateral attack and ordered the horsemen on the left flank to attack, so that a grim mounted battle took place. The hoped-for advantage from the scythed chariots never materialised. First, the lightly-armed soldiers decimated the charioteers with spears, then the phalanx formation opened to allow for the unhindered passage of the chariots, which were then annihilated in the background. But the king’s troops put the Macedonian phalanx under severe pressure and Alexander suffered heavy losses. But due to the advance of the Persian left flank, the Persian formation quickly fell into disarray. Darius was now only covered by his bodyguards. At this moment, Alexander launched the attack on the Persian centre with his cavalry, coming dangerously close to Darius. He fled, although the battle was not yet over for the Persians, the resistance of his guard was of no avail, and he feared being killed on the battlefield. The flight of Darius was interpreted by his men as a sign to retreat, shortly thereafter the entire Persian front collapsed. But the fleeing king could not be captured by Alexander. After his victory, Alexander declared himself with great pride the “King of Asia”, and Darius lost his legitimacy following his flight and was later murdered by Bessus.

Outro texto (em italiano):

È universalmente un capolavoro. Per l’archeologia di oggi e per l’arte antica. Il Mosaico della Battaglia di Isso è un’opera iconica, gioiello della Casa del Fauno a Pompei e del Museo archeologico nazionale di Napoli.
Guardiamone nel dettaglio i particolari, in particolar modo i personaggi, qui proposti in ritratti tipicamente rispondenti alla ritrattistica greca del quarto secolo avanti Cristo. Il capolavoro pompeiano, forgiato nel II secolo avanti Cristo, è presumibilmente una copia da Filosseno di Eretria, noto pittore alessandrino. Fu rinvenuto nel 1833 e traslato al Mann dieci anni dopo, con un’avventurosa (e sfortunata) traversata con carri e vagoni ferroviari. In particolare, durante il tragitto il mosaico cadde due volte: una nel Foro degli scavi, l’altra a Torre del Greco.

Il mosaico:

Iniziamo dal tema dell’opera. Ritrae un momento della Battaglia di Isso (città dell’Anatolia), combattuta da Alessandro Magno (vittorioso re dei Macedoni) e Dario III (re dei Persiani). L’attimo immortalato è quello della carica del giovane sovrano, in sella al suo Bucefalo, contro le truppe nemiche.   

Alessandro Magno:                                            

Eccolo lì: sul lato sinistro del mosaico, giovane e intrepido. Il suo volto è miracolosamente salvo, tra le enormi lacune dell’opera. Salva anche la bellissima armatura, con una testa di Medusa sul petto. Il giovane re ha gli occhi spiritati, carichi di passione e furia. Tanto da portarlo alla carica persino senza elmo, come era solito fare, contando solo sulle sue forze. Con lui, il fidato Bucefalo, l’inseparabile destriero che solo Alessandro poteva cavalcare.

Dario III (e il suo auriga):            

Spicca sul lato destro del mosaico. È circondato dai suoi soldati, con le lance puntate verso i macedoni. Ma la sua espressione è spaventata. Sembra che stia per lanciare l’ultima carica prima di dare il segnale di ritirata. Ma gli uomini non lo seguono. L’auriga è già pronto a frustare i cavalli per tornare indietro. L’espressione generale di terrore nell’esercito persiano contrasta con quella fiera di Alessandro.

L’albero secco:                                         

In secondo piano, è un elemento fondamentale del mosaico. È grazie a lui se si può affermare che la scena ritratta sia proprio quella della Battaglia di Isso. Altri studiosi, infatti, come ricorda anche Dumas in un articolo che scrisse su “Le Corricolo” nel 1842, sostenevano che l’opera rappresentasse la battaglia di Gaugamela, o quella del Granico, o, addirittura, quella di Platea. Ma è proprio quel tronco a “geolocalizzare” lo scontro di Isso, dato che nelle fonti arabe (e nell’iconografia antica) era anche indicato come “la battaglia dell’albero secco”. Per altri studiosi, invece, la pianta ha un valore concettuale: rappresenterebbe un confine. Quello, in questo caso, tra mondo orientale e mondo occidentale, che si affrontano in uno scontro non necessariamente identificabile.

Il soldato trafitto:

È vittima della lancia di Alessandro, che regge con la sua mano destra. Nel personaggio, gli storici riconoscono Dario Oxyathres, fratello del re Dario III: l’uomo si sacrifica per il suo sovrano per permettergli la fug. Anche il suo cavallo è ferito: giace a terra e un rivolo di sangue fuoriesce dalla sua bocca.

Il soldato impaurito:

È al centro del mosaico: per alcuni aspetti è la prima figura su cui mediamente si posa lo sguardo. Il soldato persiano guarda terrorizzato Alessandro. E, nel panico, si dà alla fuga, girando il cavallo, che dà le spalle a tutta la scena. La trovata artistica fa il suo effetto, con un sapiente uso dell'ombreggiatura, per trasmettere un senso di massa e volume.

Il soldato in agonia:

È forse il dettaglio più drammatico dell’opera, anche se un po’ defilato dalla scena centrale. Sul lato destro, si osserva un soldato persiano, consapevole della sconfitta e, forse, di una fine imminente. Anche lui dà le spalle all’osservatore, ma il suo volto, in agonia, si può guardare riflesso in uno scudo.

I cavalli:

Sono gli altri protagonisti del mosaico, assieme agli uomini: furiosi, impauriti e fieri. Riflettono gli sguardi e gli armamenti dei proprietari, conferendo dinamismo e drammaticità al mosaico. Restituiscono perfettamente la confusione e il tumulto della battaglia.