Johann Michael Adolf Furtwängler (30 June 1853 – 10 October 1907) was a German
archaeologist
Archaeology or archeology is the study of human activity through the recovery and analysis of material culture. The archaeological record consists of Artifact (archaeology), artifacts, architecture, biofact (archaeology), biofacts or ecofacts, ...
, teacher,
art historian
Art history is the study of artistic works made throughout human history. Among other topics, it studies art’s formal qualities, its impact on societies and cultures, and how artistic styles have changed throughout history.
Traditionally, the ...
and museum director. He was the father of the conductor
Wilhelm Furtwängler and grandfather of the German archaeologist
Andreas Furtwängler.
Early life
Furtwängler was born at
Freiburg im Breisgau
Freiburg im Breisgau or simply Freiburg is the List of cities in Baden-Württemberg by population, fourth-largest city of the German state of Baden-Württemberg after Stuttgart, Mannheim and Karlsruhe. Its built-up area has a population of abou ...
, where his father was a classical scholar and schoolteacher; he was educated there, at
Leipzig
Leipzig (, ; ; Upper Saxon: ; ) is the most populous city in the States of Germany, German state of Saxony. The city has a population of 628,718 inhabitants as of 2023. It is the List of cities in Germany by population, eighth-largest city in Ge ...
and at
Munich
Munich is the capital and most populous city of Bavaria, Germany. As of 30 November 2024, its population was 1,604,384, making it the third-largest city in Germany after Berlin and Hamburg. Munich is the largest city in Germany that is no ...
, where he was a pupil of
Heinrich Brunn, whose comparative method in
art criticism
Art criticism is the discussion or evaluation of visual art. Art critics usually criticize art in the context of aesthetics or the theory of beauty. A goal of art criticism is the pursuit of a rational basis for art appreciation but it is quest ...
he much developed.
Career
After studying at the
University of Leipzig
Leipzig University (), in Leipzig in Saxony, Germany, is one of the world's oldest universities and the second-oldest university (by consecutive years of existence) in Germany. The university was founded on 2 December 1409 by Frederick I, Electo ...
, with
Johannes Overbeck, and having graduated from Freiburg (1874), with a dissertation, ''Eros in der Vasenmalerei'', he spent the academic years 1876-1878 supported by a scholarship at the
German Archaeological Institute
The German Archaeological Institute (, ''DAI'') is a research institute in the field of archaeology (and other related fields). The DAI is a "federal agency" under the Federal Foreign Office, Federal Foreign Office of Germany.
Status, tasks and ...
, studying in Italy and Greece. In 1878, he participated in
Ernst Curtius’ excavations at
Olympia.
In 1879, he published with
Georg Loeschcke ''Mykenische Thongefäβe'', a complete publication of the Mycenaean pottery finds on Aegina. This not only provided a valuable chronology but also represented the first corpus of pottery finds in archaeology. The study was the first to distinguish between
Mycenaean and
Geometric styles in pottery, and contributed to the developing technique of identifying archaeological strata, and giving them relative dates, through the painting styles represented on pottery
sherd
This page is a glossary of archaeology, the study of the human past from material remains.
A
B
C
D
E
F
...
s, which previously had been discarded as spoil. By noting the recurrence of similar vases within a variety of strata Furtwangler was able to use these sherds as a tool for dating sites.
On the strength of this, Furtwängler received double appointments the following year (1880) as assistant director at the
Royal Museums of Berlin (''Königliche Museen zu Berlin'') and as a ''
privatdozent
''Privatdozent'' (for men) or ''Privatdozentin'' (for women), abbreviated PD, P.D. or Priv.-Doz., is an academic title conferred at some European universities, especially in German-speaking countries, to someone who holds certain formal qualifi ...
'' at the
University of Berlin
The Humboldt University of Berlin (, abbreviated HU Berlin) is a public research university in the central borough of Mitte in Berlin, Germany.
The university was established by Frederick William III on the initiative of Wilhelm von Humbol ...
. In later years Furtwängler concluded he had dedicated his best years to the museum. His catalogue of the
Saburov collection (1883–87) demonstrated his mastery of classical terracottas.
In 1885 he married Adelheid Wendt. The same year, his catalogue of the Greek pottery of the
Antikensammlung Berlin, ''Beschreibung der Vasensammlung im
Antiquarium'' (2 vols.) was published. His book on Greek sculpture, ''Meisterwerke der griechischen Plastik'' (1893) made his name familiar to a wider audience; an English translation ''Masterpieces of Greek Sculpture'', translated by Eugénie Sellers Strong, appeared in 1895. Through
connoisseurship he refined identifications of the Greek sculptors responsible for the originals of many works known only through Roman copies; many of his attributions still stand, though the most recent scholarship in the field has moved away from assigning sculptors' names to masterpieces. His 1891 reconstructions of the
Lemnian Athena by
Phidias
Phidias or Pheidias (; , ''Pheidias''; ) was an Ancient Greek sculptor, painter, and architect, active in the 5th century BC. His Statue of Zeus at Olympia was one of the Seven Wonders of the Ancient World. Phidias also designed the statues of ...
were celebrated but have subsequently occasioned dispute; they may be found in the
Dresden
Dresden (; ; Upper Saxon German, Upper Saxon: ''Dräsdn''; , ) is the capital city of the States of Germany, German state of Saxony and its second most populous city after Leipzig. It is the List of cities in Germany by population, 12th most p ...
Albertinum
The Albertinum () is a modern art museum. The sandstone-clad Renaissance Revival architecture, Renaissance Revival building is located on Brühl's Terrace in the historic center of Dresden, Germany. It is named after King Albert, King of Saxony, A ...
.
In 1894, he left Berlin to succeed his early mentor,
Heinrich von Brunn, as professor of classical archaeology in Munich, where he was also Director of the Munich
Glyptothek
The Glyptothek () is a museum in Munich, Germany, which was commissioned by the Bavarian King Ludwig I of Bavaria, Ludwig I to house his collection of Ancient Greek art, Greek and Roman art, Roman sculptures (hence γλυπτο- ''glypto-'' "sculp ...
. In 1896 in his book ''Beschreibung der geschnittenen Steine im Antiquarium'', Furtwängler excluded from his own catalogues of engraved stones in Berlin those engraved gems that were associated with magic, as their artistic value was considered by him not important. For this reason, he was convinced that these types of engraved stones should also be removed from the display of the collection in the Department of Egyptology.
Furtwängler published a study on Greek
engraved gem
An engraved gem, frequently referred to as an intaglio, is a small and usually semi-precious gemstone that has been carved, in the Western tradition normally with images or inscriptions only on one face. The engraving of gemstones was a major lux ...
s and their inscriptions ''Die Antiken Gemmen'' (1900). With Karl W. Reichhold he initiated the corpus of Greek vases, ''
Griechische Vasenmalerei'' in 1904, issued in fascicles. After Furtwängler's death, Friedrich Hauser assumed editorship; a third volume of Furtwängler's ''Griechische Vasenmalerei'' was published in 1932.
In the field, he renewed the excavations at the temple of
Aphaia in
Aegina
Aegina (; ; ) is one of the Saronic Islands of Greece in the Saronic Gulf, from Athens. Tradition derives the name from Aegina (mythology), Aegina, the mother of the mythological hero Aeacus, who was born on the island and became its king.
...
, southwest of Athens; the work resulted in a monograph of the site (1906), but the following year resulted in the
dysentery
Dysentery ( , ), historically known as the bloody flux, is a type of gastroenteritis that results in bloody diarrhea. Other symptoms may include fever, abdominal pain, and a feeling of incomplete defecation. Complications may include dehyd ...
contracted at the site from which he died (October 10, 1907), in the full maturity of his career. He was buried in Athens. His grave is located at the
First Cemetery of Athens.
Assessment and legacy
Furtwängler was a prolific writer, with a prodigious knowledge and memory, and a most ingenious and confident critic; and his work not only dominated the field of archaeological criticism but also raised its standing both at home and abroad.
Among his numerous publications the most important were a volume on the bronzes found at Olympia, vast works on ancient gems and Greek vases, and the invaluable ''Meisterwerke der griechischen Plastik'' (''Masterpieces of Greek Sculpture'') (1893
and 1908; English translations by
Eugenie Strong and Taylor, London, 1914).
Furtwängler's students formed an outstanding group among the next generation of classical art historians and archaeologists, and his published research was of even wider influence.
Notes
References
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Attribution:
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Further reading
External links
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{{DEFAULTSORT:Furtwangler, Adolf
1853 births
1907 deaths
People from Freiburg im Breisgau
Academic staff of the Humboldt University of Berlin
Archaeologists from Baden-Württemberg
Scholars of ancient Greek pottery
Burials at the First Cemetery of Athens
Deaths from dysentery
Adolf