The exhibition She Walks in Beauty: Women of the Han Dynasty and Roman Empire opened on June 15, 2024 at the Hunan Museum, China.
Jointly curated by the Hunan Museum and Rome’s Capitoline Superintendence for Cultural Heritage, the exhibition is organized into three parts: “Living in Peace”, “Charm of Women” and “Flowers Blooming and Family Reunion”. It brings together 200 pieces (sets) of artifacts from 19 Italian and Chinese museums, including bronzes, pottery, gold and silverware, glassware, jade, sculptures, among others. Together, they recreate the domestic, personal and social lives of women in ancient Rome and the Chinese Han dynasty (202 BCE–220 CE).
The “Living in Peace” section highlights women from ancient Rome and the Han dynasty in family life. It features various artefacts related to cosmetics, accessories, clothing, housing and banquets, such as the watercolor painting “Pompei Style Figure”, Han-dynasty plain gauze gown and dou-shaped bronze lamp. These artifacts offer deep insights into the seemingly insignificant but remarkably powerful role of women within the family, as well as their craft creations and unique perspectives on good life.
The “Charm of Women” section highlights the diverse roles and contributions of women in eastern and western societies. Whether it’s upper-class women in prominent positions or ordinary women in rural areas, they have all contributed to the prosperity and progress of the societies they lived in in their own ways. For instance, the marble statue of Empress Livia exemplifies the classical charms of Roman women, while the stone brick carving of a woman harvesting mulberry leaves depicts Han dynasty women working in silk production.
The “Flowers Blooming and Family Reunion” section showcases artifacts that explore the emotional worlds of Han dynasty and Roman women, including the fragment of a relief from a sarcophagus depicting a wedding scene, a marble statue of the goddess Isis, and a bronze mirror with grass blade motifs and the inscription “let’s not forget each other after so long apart”. These artifacts immerse visitors in a dialogue on love and marriage across time and space with women from the Han and Roman periods, providing a glimpse of their deep longings and determined pursuits of romantic love and a happy marriage.
The exhibition is open until October 7.
Source: Xinmin News