Nisa
Metal sculptures
The JuTAKE excavations of the Square House in the citadel’s north sector yielded another significant class of materials: the metal figurines, sculpted in the round or in relief, in gilded silver or bronze and usually of small sizes, most likely decorated furnishings or other objects, from vessels to weapons.
They make up a heterogeneous group that is extremely indicative of the artistic, stylistic and technical trends that characterised the entire Nisene production. The representations of Athena, Eros, gryphons and sphynxes, centaurs and eagles once again highlights the simultaneous presence of typically Greek iconographies alongside themes that were typical of the world of the steppes, i.e. of the origins of the ruling dynasty.
A recent in-depth iconographic and stylistic study (Invernizzi, 1999) highlighted a series of comparisons with Greek and Iranian works that are significant of understanding this production, which appears to belong to the period between the 2nd century B..C. and the 1st century A.D. Although their size and expressive detail makes them minor works, the metal figurines from Nisa are a body of work that gives us to a better understanding of the Arsacid rulers’ taste and ideology.