It is with great pleasure that I present today's post, written by fellow archaeologist Dr Thanos Sideris. Dr Sideris discovered this extraordinary find through his friends Kleopatra and Dimitris, who very kindly provided the photographs, and he wrote the following excellent piece.
This is a rare case of Consuming Greek Antiquity in the Far East.
Enjoy!
***
Dr Thanos Sideris
China bets on Greek mythology!
Once upon a
time, when I was a student, my professor of History of Philosophy assigned to
me a seminar work consisting in the comparison of Lao Tse (or Laozi) to
Heraclitus, who, to my biggest astonishment, proved to be not only
contemporaries (both lived presumably in the end of the 6th and the
beginning of the 5th century BC), but also sharing a similar
perception of time, morality and change. Since then I was offered many more
occasions to observe the strange kinship of the two ancient civilizations, the Ancient China exhibition in the Met, in
2004, being one of the thoroughest.
I was
however –and I am still- not familiar with the issues related to the reception
of Classical culture in China Macau ,
a former Portuguese colony and nowadays a special administration Chinese
territory. Macau seems to be the paradise of gambling, and according to most
recent statistics it has a turnover surpassing by far that of Las Vegas
The Greek
Mythology Casino is owned by a Chinese magnate, who has been recently in
troubles with the triads (Chinese mafia organizations) controlling the gaming
industry. The owner was attacked in his own establishment and beaten so badly
that he spent several weeks in a hospital. It is not clear however why he opted
for the ancient Greek mythology theme for his casino, and who was the designer
of the exuberant –Versailles inspired- Poseidon fountain in front of the
entrance, the astonishing Zeus statue in the lobby, and all these colorful
frescos, reliefs and statues.
Yet,
according to a reliable source which desires to remain anonymous, the attack of
the triads should not be seen as retaliation for his aesthetic crime.
Personally I still have my doubts…
1 σχόλιο:
Aargh! Aesthetic crime is an understatement for this mostrosity...
Δημοσίευση σχολίου