Holly Pittman

Holly Pittman is a Near Eastern art historian and archaeologist, and an expert in Near Eastern glyptic art. She is the Bok Family Professor in the Humanities and a Professor in the History of Art Department of the University of Pennsylvania and serves as a curator in the Near East Section of the University of Pennsylvania Museum of Archaeology and Anthropology. Before joining the University of Pennsylvania, she was a curator of Ancient Near Eastern Art at the Metropolitan Museum of Art from 1974 to 1989. Since 1972, she has conducted archaeological excavations throughout the Middle East, including projects in Syria, Turkey, Cyprus, Iran, and Iraq. In 2019 she began directing new excavations at the site of Lagash in southern Iraq.^[1][2]

Holly Pittman
Academic work
Discipline	Art History
Institutions	University of Pennsylvania

Education and career

Pittman began her undergraduate career at Bryn Mawr College, where she was first interested in chemistry and later studied ancient history. She completed her BA at Binghamton University and received her MA (1976) and PhD from Columbia University in 1990. She studied with Dr. Edith Porada in the Department of Art History and Archaeology at Columbia and wrote a dissertation, Glazed Steatite Glyptic Style: The Structure and Function of an Image System, which was awarded distinction. While studying at Columbia, Pittman also worked as a curator of Ancient Near Eastern Art at the Metropolitan Museum of Art.^[3]

In 1989, Pittman joined the History of Art Department at the University of Pennsylvania as an associate professor. From 2000 to 2009 she was the College for Women Class of 1963 Endowed Term Professor in the Humanities and was the History of Art Departmental Chair. In 2010 she became the Bok Family Professor in the Humanities. Pittman also serves as a curator in the Near Section of the University of Pennsylvania Museum of Archaeology and Anthropology. She was the director of the Center for Ancient Studies from 1996 to 1999 and 2003 to 2007, for which she is now a member of the Executive Committee.^[3]

Excavations

Holly Pittman has conducted excavations in Cyprus, Turkey, Syria, Iran, and Iraq. Most notably she worked at the site of Konar Sandal near Jiroft in south-central Iran from 2004 to 2008, which revealed a previously unknown Early Bronze Age civilization with connections to the Indus Valley, Mesopotamia, and Central Asia.^[4][5] In 2019, she reinitiated excavations at the site of Lagash in southern Iraq.^[6]

Research and publications

Pittman is best known for her work on glyptic art and she has published extensively on 3rd millennium seals and sealings and Early Bronze Age administrative systems. She has edited and contributed to several volumes on the art and archaeology of the Near East as well as publications related to exhibitions. Since 2007, Pittman has directed the Al-Hiba Publication Project.^[7]

Museum Curation

At the Penn Museum

Middle East Galleries: Journey to the City (2017–present)

Holly Pittman worked with a team of 10 curators and 16 conservators to create the Penn Museum's new permanent Middle East Galleries.^[8][9] It took three years to curate this large exhibit which spans 7,000 years of human history, from the earliest cities to today's modern metropolises.^[10][11] Pittman went on record stating that one of her favorite objects in the gallery is a translucent obsidian bowl which demonstrates remarkable craftsmanship. She remarked that “Through these galleries we are trying to tell the story of humanity, of people who were not so different from you or me.”^[12]

Iraq's Ancient Past: Discoveries from the Ur's Royal Cemetery (2009–2017)

Incorporating many of the same artifacts as "Treasures from the Royal Tombs of Ur", Pittman and co-curator Richard L. Zettler reinterpreted the excavations at Ur in the special exhibit “Iraq’s Ancient Past: Discoveries from the Ur’s Royal Cemetery”.^[13][14] Like the exhibit's previous iteration, it includes several objects which the art critic and former Metropolitan Museum of Art Director Thomas Hoving called “the finest, most resplendent and magical works of art in all of America.”^[15] In addition, the exhibit brings together the ancient past and the present by exploring pressing issues of preserving Iraq's cultural heritage during the country's ongoing military conflicts.^[16]

Treasures from the Royal Tombs of Ur (Traveling Exhibit) (1993–2003)

Together with Penn Museum curator Richard L. Zettler, Pittman curated this traveling exhibit which displayed more than 200 ancient Sumerian artifacts from the city of Ur.^[17] These objects, many of which are now on display in the Penn Museum's permanent Middle East Galleries, include the so-called “Ram in a Thicket”, and Queen Puabi’s elaborate headdress. The artifacts visited eight cities, including Chicago, Illinois and Knoxville, Tennessee, before returning to the Penn Museum in 2001.^[18][19][20]

At the Metropolitan Museum of Art

Ancient Art in Miniature: Exhibition of Cylinder and Stamp seals in the collection of Martin Cherkasky (1987)

Pittman curated this exhibit following the Met’s acquisition of 250 stamp and cylinder seals from donors Martin and Sarah Cherkasky.^[21][22] The exhibit, which included both the recently donated seals and a selection from the Met’s permanent collection, highlighted the importance of stamp and cylinder seals in the study of the art and archaeology of the ancient Near East. The use of stamp seals preceded writing in Near Eastern society, and they were the major form of seal used beginning in 6th century BC.^[23]

Assyrian Relief Galleries (1979)

Working with co-curators Vaughn Crawford and Prudence Harper, Pittman curated this exhibit as the first stage in the reinstallation of the Met's permanent Ancient Near Eastern Art galleries. This gallery includes the Assyrian relief sculptures from the palace of Ashurnasirpal II. Notably, they are positioned as they would have been displayed in his palace in Nimrud.^[24]

Ancient Near East Galleries (1978)

Working with a team of several co-curators, Pittman reimagined the display of the Met’s Ancient Near Eastern art collection after retrieving them from storage following the construction of the Lila Acheson Wallace Galleries of Egyptian Art.^[25]

Scythian Treasures from the Hermitage (1975)

As an assistant for her first curatorial efforts, Pittman helped curate this exhibit which displayed renowned Scythian gold objects as well as important bronze, wood, leather, and felt artworks. The exhibit received positive reviews from the New York Times, which recognized leather cutout figures of elks and the felt swan of the fifth century B.C. as especially interesting artworks.^[26]

Selected publications

• Pittman, Holly. “The First Cities.” Journey to the City: A Companion to the Middle East Galleries at the Penn Museum. Steve Tinney and Karen Sonik, eds., 45–64.
• Hatfield, Gary, and Holly Pittman, editors. Evolution of Mind, Brain, and Culture. University of Pennsylvania Press, 2013.
• Madjidzadeh, Youssef, and Holly Pittman. "Excavations at Konar Sandal in the region of Jiroft in the Halil Basin: first preliminary report (2002–2008)." Iran 46.1 (2008): 69–103.
• Pittman, Holly. The Glazed Steatite Glyptic Style : the Structure and Function of an Image System In the Administration of Protoliterate Mesopotamia. Berlin: D. Reimer, 1994.
• Pittman, Holly, and Joan Aruz. Ancient Art In Miniature: Near Eastern Seals From the Collection of Martin and Sarah Cherkasky. New York: The Metropolitan Museum of Art, 1987.
• Pittman, Holly, and Edith Porada. Art of the Bronze Age: Southeastern Iran, Western Central Asia, and the Indus Valley. Metropolitan Museum of Art, 1984.

References

1. "Holly Pittman | Penn History of Art". www.sas.upenn.edu. University of Pennsylvania. Retrieved 2 March 2017.
2. kel306 (2012-10-23). "Holly Pittman". Institute for the Study of the Ancient World. Retrieved 2017-04-04.{{cite news}}: CS1 maint: numeric names: authors list (link)
3. Olszewski, Deborah I. (2006). "Meet the Curators: Holly Pittman, Curator, Near East Section". Expedition Magazine. Vol. 48, no. 2 – via Penn Museum Website.
4. "The Jiroft Civilization: A New Culture of the Bronze Age on the Iranian Plateau | Research – Penn Museum". www.penn.museum. Retrieved 2020-03-27.
5. Madjidzadeh, Youssef; Pittman, Holly (2008). "Excavations at Konar Sandal in the Region of Jiroft in the Halil Basin: First Preliminary Report (2002–2008)". Iran. 46: 69–103. doi:10.1080/05786967.2008.11864738. ISSN 0578-6967. JSTOR 25651436. S2CID 194883051.
6. "Survey and Excavation at Al-Hiba, Dhi Qar Province, Iraq" (PDF). Department of Ancient Near Eastern Art Newsletter. 3: 11. 2019. Retrieved 7 April 2020.
7. "The Al-Hiba Publication Project". al-hiba.net. Retrieved 2020-03-27.
8. "Penn Museum opens new Middle East gallery". WHYY. Retrieved 2020-03-27.
9. "Middle East Galleries". www.penn.museum. Retrieved 2020-03-27.
10. Swartz, Laura (2018-04-18). "Penn Museum Unveils New Middle East Galleries". Philadelphia Family Magazine. Retrieved 2020-03-27.
11. "Sneak peek: Inside the new Middle East Galleries at the Penn Museum". pennlive. 2018-04-19. Retrieved 2020-03-27.
12. "Revealing Penn Museum's Middle East treasures". Penn Today. Retrieved 2020-03-27.
13. "Iraq's Ancient Past: Rediscovering Ur's Royal Cemetery". Retrieved 2020-03-27.
14. "10/27/09, Iraq's Ancient Past: Rediscovering Ur's Royal Cemetery – Almanac, Vol. 56, No. 09". almanac.upenn.edu. Retrieved 2020-03-27.
15. "Iraq's Ancient Past: Rediscovering Ur's Royal Cemetery". Penn Today. Retrieved 2020-03-27.
16. Emberling, Geoff; Petit, Lucas P. (September 6, 2018). Museums and the ancient Middle East : curatorial practice and audiences. Routledge. pp. 180–181. ISBN 978-0815349723. Retrieved 7 April 2020.
17. "Expedition Magazine – Penn Museum". www.penn.museum. Retrieved 2020-03-27.
18. "Treasures from the Royal Tombs of Ur | McClung Museum of Natural History & Culture". mcclungmuseum.utk.edu. 14 September 2016. Retrieved 2020-03-27.
19. "Treasures from the Royal Tombs of Ur | Middlebury College Museum of Art". museum.middlebury.edu. Retrieved 2020-03-27.
20. "Treasures From The Royal Tombs Of Ur | The Oriental Institute of the University of Chicago". oi.uchicago.edu. Retrieved 2020-03-27.
21. Pittman, Holly (1987). Ancient Art in Miniature: Ancient Near Eastern Seals from the Collection of Martin and Sarah Cherkasky. The Metropolitan Museum of Art. ISBN 0300193009.
22. Reif, Rita (October 11, 1987). "ANTIQUES; Seals That Offer Images of the Past". The New York Times. p. A42.
23. Katz, William A.; Dahl, Svend (1995). Dahl's history of the book (3rd English ed.). Lanham, MD & London: Scarecrow Press. p. 31. ISBN 9780810828520. Retrieved 7 April 2020.
24. Pittmann, Holly; Crawford, Vaughn E.; Harper, Prudence O.; Frank, Dorothea Seelye (1979). Assyrian Reliefs and Ivories in The Metropolitan Museum of Art: Palace Reliefs of Assurnasirpal II and Ivory Carvings from Nimrud. The Metropolitan Museum of Art. ISBN 0300193068.
25. Pittman, Holly; Harper; Muscarella; Porter; Spar (1984). "Ancient Near Eastern Art": The Metropolitan Museum of Art Bulletin, v. 41, no. 4 (Spring, 1984). The Metropolitan Museum of Art.
26. Russell, John (1975-04-18). "Met Shows Scythian Art With Skill". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved 2020-03-27.