David Plates

The David Plates are a set of nine silver plates, in three sizes, stamped between 613 and 630. The plates were created in Constantinople, each depicting a scene from the life of the Hebrew king David, and associated with the reign of Emperor Heraclius (610-641).[1] Following their discovery in Karavas (northern Cyprus) in 1902, the David Plates have been considered key additions to early Byzantine secular art. It is also noted that the David Plates were found amongst the Second Cyprus Treasure. Casual laborers from the village of Karavas found the David Plates as they were quarrying the ruins for construction stones.[2] The finders, however, failed to report what they had discovered to the Cypriot authorities. When authorities learned of their taking they confiscated three of the David Plates alongside a pair of cross-monogram plates, and other jewelry held today in the Museum of Antiquities in Nicosia. The rest of the discovery was smuggled from Cyprus and traded to a dealer located in Paris. Most of this hoard was bought by J. Pierpont Morgan and was later given to the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York City by his heirs in 1917, where they currently remain.

David battles Goliath, the largest plate.
Samuel anointing David, medium size
David's Confrontation with Eliab, a small plate

Large, Center Plate
  • David battles Goliath. Size and weight: 19 7/16 x 2 5/8 in., 203.9oz. (49.4 x 6.6 cm, 5780g)

Medium plates
  • Samuel anoints David in the presence of his father and brothers
  • David is Introduced to Saul
  • Saul Arms David
  • Marriage of David and Michal

Smaller plates
  • David fights lion
  • David fights bear
  • David approached by messenger while playing the harp
  • David's Confrontation with Eliab

Manufacture

The David Plates are of extremely high quality, pointing the source of production to the palace workshops in Constantinople that was known for the manufacture of specific luxury commodities. The plates have control stamps by the Byzantine emperor Heraclius to assure the quality of silver used to make them.[3] The nine silver plates were made in three sizes; one large plate, four medium plates and another four small plates.[4] Regarding the form, the plates are similar, with rolled rims, concave surfaces, and a high foot ring.

Commission

The stamps offer an intriguing aspect of relating the David Plates to Heraclius’ rule. It is often thought that the set could have been commissioned to celebrate the defeat of the Sasanian Empire (628-629) by Heraclius. He managed to end a long war with Persia and retook control over Egypt, Syria, and other Byzantine regions. Specifically, Heraclius regained the Byzantine territories that included Jerusalem (founded by King David) and the Sasanian city of Ctesiphon. The Sasanian War echoed David’s victory over Goliath as he also beheaded his enemy, giving him the acclaim of being the new David. The emperor’s image as the new David par excellence might have been praised to celebrate past achievement as well as promote confidence in the present and future. The last years on the control stamps, therefore, are seen as the most likely for the development of David Plates. It is thought that Heraclius ordered the commission of the David Plates for their intrinsic value. More aspects are still being studied to point out their true reality in Byzantine art history.

Relationship with the life of King David

Various artists and intellects have established the possible relationship between the plates and the life of King David. The David Plates are associated with the period after the victory of King David over the Persians when Emperor Heraclius was often concerned with his role in history, authority, and image. Other proponents also claim that each plate is associated specifically with King David, from the time Samuel anointed him to the time he married Saul's daughter. The slight contradictions of the period relating to the plates can be understood since the plates are among the most ancient components of Byzantine art. The explanations that can be retrieved today are only significant regarding the accuracy of the dates established in the writings. The exact periods that the plates describe appear to be contradicting in different writings, but the general information that the writers seek to pass is rather similar. Between 1970 and 1978, there were five readings about the plates, each associated with some deficiencies in information and accuracy in time.[5] Although there are certain discrepancies in the information that the writers passed, all readings accept the fact that Heraclius had a significant role in the design of the plates. Furthermore, the David plates evoke the significant victories during the reign of Emperor Heraclius.

References
  1. Cormack, Robin. Byzantine Art. Oxford U. Press. 2000. Print. p. 63.
  2. Leader, Ruth. The David Plates Revisited: Transforming the Secular in Early Byzantium. The Art Bulletin, Vol. 82, No 3 (Sept. 2000) pgs 407-427. https://www.jstor.org/stable/3051395
  3. Norris, Michael (2000). A Masterwork of Byzantine Art: The David Plates; The Story of David and Goliath. p. 12.
  4. Alexander, Suzanne Spain. "Heraclius, Byzantine imperial ideology, and the David plates." Speculum 52.2 (1977): 234.
  5. Ross, Marvin C. "A Byzantine gold medallion at Dumbarton Oaks." Dumbarton Oaks Papers 11 (1957): 247-261.

Web Resources

Metropolitan Museum of Art, Educator's Guide to the David Plates

Plate with the Arming of David

Plate with David Anointed by Samuel

Plate with David Slaying a Lion

Plate with the Battle of David and Goliath

Plate with the Presentation of David to Saul

Heroes of the Old Testament: Picturing the Story of David and Goliath

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