Simple paper model kit made from cardboard of the Pergamon Altar to cut out and glue in colour print. With short instructions and background informations in German and English. As an inexpensive worksheet, the model kit is also very suitable for School lessons or educational work in museums. If larger quantities of the paper model kit are required, we offer corresponding graduated prices.
Size approx. 17 x 15 x 5 cm, difficulty level easy. The scale is approximately 1:200.
Simple paper model kit made from cardboard of the Pergamon Altar to cut out and glue in colour print. With short instructions and background informations in German and English. As an inexpensive worksheet, the model kit is also very suitable for School lessons or educational work in museums. If larger quantities of the paper model kit are required, we offer corresponding graduated prices.
Size approx. 17 x 15 x 5 cm, difficulty level easy. The scale is approximately 1:200.
Ancient Pergamon
Pergamon was an ancient Greek city in Asia Minor near modern-day Izmir in Turkey, whose name can probably be traced back to the parchment produced there. Today's city bears the name Bergama. The importance of Pergamon in antiquity is probably similar to that of the metropolises of Alexandria or Ephesus.
Reconstruction of the theatre and Acropolis in the Pergamon Panorama Berlin
In addition to the production of parchment, the city was known for the outstanding flourishing of its art and culture. Sculpture in particular developed into a veritable industry during the Hellenistic period, which was closely linked to the rising world power Rome. In the middle of the 2nd century AD, the population was estimated at around 200,000 people.
With the Arab conquests, the city slowly fell into insignificance. In the 13th century, Pergamon was largely destroyed and numerous important works of art such as statues or magnificent figurative friezes were removed and reused as cheap building material.
The looting of the antiquities lasted for centuries. When the German engineer Carl Humann visited the site in 1864, the remains of the buildings and statues were still being smashed and burnt in lime kilns. With the support of the Royal Museums in Berlin, the first excavations were carried out and the outstanding finds were presented to the public in the Pergamon Museum in Berlin, which was built in 1907.
The early excavations focused in particular on a large complex decorated with elaborate figurative friezes and a large cremation site in the centre. The inner frieze depicts the myth of Telephos, who, as the son of Hercules, was regarded as the founding father of the city of Pergamon.
Reconstruction of the altar in the Pergamon-Panorama, Berlin.
It is believed to be a monumental sacrificial altar that refers to the temple of Athena or was used for ceremonies in honour of the supreme god Zeus and later Jupiter. Its outer walls feature elaborate sculptural friezes depicting the Gigantomachy, the battle of the gods against the Titans and giants, symbolising good against evil or divine order against chaos.
Lucius Ampelius, a Roman writer from the 2nd century, described the altar with its friezes and statues as a wonder of the world even in ancient times.
The Pergamon Altar is one of the most outstanding finds from antiquity and can be seen as a World Heritage Site in the Pergamon Museum in Berlin. Unfortunately, the museum is currently closed due to extensive building work.
Bild: von Lestat (Jan Mehlich) - Eigenes Werk, CC BY-SA 3.0, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=3099513
