The Philadelphia Museum of Art was originally chartered in the year 1876 as a museum of Art. It was mainly chartered to allow for the Centennial Exposition. The museum’s design started in the year 1876, and it was completed in the year 1928. It is situated in the Philadelphia' Benjamin Franklin Parkway in the region famously known as the Northwest Philadelphia. The museum is important because it contains several objects which add up to about 227,000. These objects originated from the Asia, Europe, and America. The objects range from the paintings, sculpture, drawings, photographs and other decorative arts. According to the database of the museums, many people make their visit to the museum yearly. For example, in the year 2004, about 643,096 visitors from all over the world were reported to have visited the museum (Elsner & Roger 17).
The main building of the museum administers many annexes that include the Rodin Museum that is found on Ruth, Raymond and Benjamin Franklin Parkway G.Perelman Building whose location is in the North Street opposite the main street (Elsner & Roger 17). The objects found in the museum have many significances and symbolisms of the social lives. These items are important, and they fall into the art genre that is used to pass important information concerning particular issues affecting the society. Arriving at the museum and seeing these items makes an individual to notice their importance in passing the information. The sculptures are crucial because they do not just exist in the museums but exist because there is an important issue that is intended to be passed to a particular community. Thus, the details of the objects found in the museum are significant in ensuring that the intended message is provided to the public in simple terms. The items found in the Philadelphia are accompanied by short descriptions that show exactly what is meant by the image and the time the event took place (Robinson 88).
The objects found in the museum explain what is found in both the Epic of Gilgamesh and the Lila. The themes such as death, relationship and love are represented in these two books. By analyzing the arts of works found in the Philadelphia Museum, one can easily understand how they borrow these themes from the two books (George 71). As an individual goes through the objects found in the Philadelphia Museum and critically analyzes them, they easily remember what is explained in both Epic of Gilgamesh and Lila. Therefore, there is a relationship between the themes of both the Epic of Gilgamesh and the Lila and the objects found in the Philadelphia Museum of Art.
The first object to be noticed in the museum is the sculpture that portrays Jesus Christ on the cross after being crucified. The sculpture bears the name Rogier Van der Weyden Crucifixion and indicates that it was created in the year 1460 by Roger (Elsner & Roger 17). The sculpture reminded me in the sufferings that Jesus underwent before he was crucified. It is an important sculpture that portrays the themes found in the Epic Gilgamesh that included the relationship and death. In the sculpture, Jesus is seen in the cross after he was crucified (George 57). At his side is Mary his mother being assisted by another woman after fainting when she saw her son on the cross. Beneath Jesus on the cross is a skull. The skull signifies the death. As found in the book of the Epic of Gilgamesh, it passes an important message that death is inevitable and that people should be prepared such that when the death comes, they will be saved by the blood of Jesus Christ. As the book also talks about the relationship, the sculpture portrays that relationship is important for peaceful coexistence among the people in the society. For example, when one sees the object where another woman assists Jesus after fainting as a result of seeing her son on the cross, it shows that relationship among the people is inevitable. Furthermore, it shows that relationship is of great importance because, through it, people assist one another during the times of difficulties (George 67). It is not just a sculpture, but it is another way of passing important information to the society. Therefore, anybody who visits the museum and finds this sculpture has the opportunity to understand how the cructification process went on. The descriptions found in the bottom of the sculpture are important because they briefly inform the people on the suffering that are found in the society where they live in. It shows that Jesus endured suffering and as result people were saved. However, it is significant for the people to understand that suffering is investable in the society, and thus, they should learn how to persevere as Jesus Christ did.
Another object that is found in the Museum is the sculpture named the Alfred Stevens. It was designed in the year 1859 and bears the description will you out with me, Fido? (Elsner & Roger 17) .The object is important because it signifies the relationship and love in the society. It portrays a lady who is trying hard to open the door of her lover. In the window is a man purported to be her lover. He peeps in the window. Upon seeing the object, one can easily understand what it signifies in the society. The object is crucial when it comes to matters of relationship and love in the society. The object seems to be significant to me because, through it, I connect with the themes featured in the Lila the novel by Marilynne Robinson. The themes found in the novel are the themes of relationship and love. It is crucial to visit the museum to understand better the themes found in the novel.
The museum's mission is to show the world and the humanity through the portrayal of various objects. Many objects found in the museum have different themes that are intended to pass specific information to the people of the society. For example, both the objects showing the image of Jesus being crucified and that of the two lovers portray the themes that are found in the Epic of Gilgamesh and Lila. These include the themes such as relationship, love and death. The objects are significant because it connects what is found in the museum and the real world. For example, by visiting, seeing and interpreting the object portraying the image of Jesus Christ being crucified, one can easily understand the suffering that Jesus underwent to save the humanity from the sins. The attendants in the museum are generous enough, and they clearly understand the meanings of every object found in the museum. Upon arriving at the museum, the attendants are ready to take the visitors around as they explain to them the importance of the displayed objects.
Both the Epic of Gilgamesh and the Lila books portray the themes that are related to what is happening in the society. The relationship is part and parcel of the society's aspects that ensure that people in the society coexist harmoniously. Furthermore, being an aspect of the relationship is portrayed by the authors of the two books. Love ensures that people relate and build their future. Through the themes, one can easily connect to the normal activities taking place in the society. For example, to build a lasting marriage people have to love each other, relate and later get married (Robinson 78). The objects that are found in these museums are important and connect the social aspects of the society. The descriptions that are found in the objects in the Philadelphia museum of art signify the reality of the world. It is thus, important for any individual to visit the Philadelphia Museum of Art to learn more concerning the society where they live in. All the objects that are found in the museum are important in one way or another. Despite being a public museum, it acts as a religious site as the main aim is to bring what is happening in different parts of the world and the reality of the world. Therefore, the themes of Epic of Gilgamesh and Lila are clearly explained by the objects that are found in the Philadelphia Museum of Art.
Works Cited
George, A. R. The epic of Gilgamesh: the Babylonian epic poem and other texts in Akkadian and Sumerian. London: Penguin Books, 2003. Print.
Robinson, Marilynne. Lila. N.p., 2014. Print.
Elsner, John, and Roger Cardinal. Cultures and Collections in the Museums. Reaktion Books, 2004.
