Trail are two archeologist who challenge the authenticity of the mask. They have come up with arguments that try to prove the mask is a forgery. Some scholars claim that their arguments are not valid and lack scholarly reasoning to support their arguments. Some scholars believe that the mask is a mixture of different styles from different places and times, No one can really tell it the mask is authentic or fake. I believe that the mask was edited by Schlemiels and his men. The mask of Agamemnon is not authentic due to its lack of Mycenaean qualities that would price its authenticity.
The mask to Agamemnon is not authentic; therefore it was edited by Schlemiels and his workers. The mask of Agamemnon was found in Shaft Grave V by Schlemiels on the Treasury of Auteur it is one of the most famous artworks that have been found. The mask of Agamemnon is a gold funeral mask. It was made using the reposes© method. This technique makes it look like it was hammered The hair on the mask looks like it was engraved. The mask is crooked. The ears are not in proportion, the moustache looks like it Vass put on wrong and everything on this mask looks wrong. The beard on the mask is V shaped.
Most funerary masks are flat, but this one is not.. The mask is three dimensional and it looks like the ears were cut out rather than made together with the rest of the mask. The hair on the mask is Wary detailed; one can almost see every strand Of his beard. The eyes on the mask appear to be open. The eyelids are made in a way that makes the eyes seem to be both open and closed at the same time. Compared to the mask of Agamemnon, other objects found in the graves look Mycenaean and authentic, One example is image three, which is the inlaid dagger, was found in grave A Mycenae, Greece, 1600-1500 BCC.
The dagger is about nine inches long. It is made of different metals such as gold, silver, and Nellie: Nellie is a chemical that is rubbed into the needle- like cut to make the texture of the dagger, The daggers were difficult to make, and are very detailed. One depicts a scene to a lion hunt; the lions look heraldic and symbolic, this explains why they were found in graves because only important officials were buried with expensive ornaments. The lions on the dagger are in the flying gallop pose, which is a convention started by the Minoans then adapted by the Mycenaean.
The figures on the dagger are wearing shorts but not helmets and carrying a shield. I believe the figures represent the people buried in the graves, because they look heroic and important people were buried in the graves. It is possible that Schlemiels made a similar assumption in finding the mask of Agamemnon since he was a Trojan soldier. The two artworks described beforehand are different even though they are claimed to be from the same civilization. Figure three shows more Mycenaean qualities than the mask of Agamemnon.
Most Of the Mycenaean metal works were not made Of pure gold. Like the inlaid dagger, most of them were mixed with metals like silver. They are both inlaid but the dagger has signs of the Mycenaean convention of depicting animal scenes. It is believed that the funerary mask Schlemiels found is a forgery. The funerary mask does not look like some of the other Mycenaean gold funerary mask, A local reporter of the Argils News reported the “mask had no mustache”. Compared to figure two found in shaft grave A, the facial features on mask of Agamemnon does not match all the others.
It is believed the facial hair does not look Mycenaean. According to Harrington Spencer the mouth on figure is short and thick with ill defined lips and no discernible chin, but the mask of Agamemnon has a wider mouth, thin lips and a well define chin. The eyes on the mask of Agamemnon are different from the other masks found in the shaft graves of Mycenae. The eyebrows on figure two are nothing in detail, but the eyebrows on the mask of Agamemnon the look as if they have been engraved on the mask.
The eyelids on the mask of Agamemnon seem to be open, while those on figure two are closest Schlemiels edited the mask because it does not have any similarities with other metal work found in Mycenae. The mask looks too reflect compared to the Other masks found in the grave; it looks like it was made at a later date. It is not severely faded like the other artworks found in the shaft graves Of Mycenae. The Mycenaean’ did not make their metalwork purely out Of gold. Most of their artwork was made with different metals, such as silver and bronze.
I believe the mask was edited because the mask Of Schlemiels found was believed to be made of pure gold and according to Calder “no ancient object was ever made Of pure gold”. Some scholars like David Trail’, have questioned the authenticity of the mask of Agamemnon and requested for the object to be tested. Trail has asked for it to be tested to see if the mask is really made of gold but his request has been denied. If the mask is said to be authentic, then why has it not been tested? The answer is not known.
Fifth mask is believed to be an authentic piece, then it should be tested, Testing the mask to know if it is pure gold does not ruin the mask instead testing it will enable scholars to find out the truth about the mask’s authenticity, Some Scholars believe Schlemiels planted the mask. The dates at which the mask was found bring about questions as to whether the mask is a forgery or not. According to Calder “the Mycenae excavations took place between August seventh and December third 1876, the mask was discovered November 30. Only three days before the site was closed”.
It seems like the mask was planted in the grave to be found. Why would Schlemiels close the site right after he found the mask of Agamemnon? It might be that he planted the mask in the grave so he would become famous for finding the mask of Agamemnon. It could have been that Schlemiels was looking for a plan to advance his career and in order to do that he planted the mask and got his fame from supposedly finding it. It is claimed the excavations oeuvre closed on November 26th and 27th His absence could have made it possible for him to plant the mask.
Some archeologist do not believe that Schlemiels planted the mask, instead they claim that “it is difficult to see how the insertion Of the mask could have been achieved when Schlemiels was working under the constant supervision of Pantsuits Astigmatism the director Of Antiquities, Who was assisted from November 28 by other archeologist sent from Athens, and by a guard of Greek soldiers on the site”. Under this strict supervision it is highly doubtful that Schlemiels planted the mask in the grave so he could find it.
Due to the reasons stated beforehand, believe the mask of Agamemnon was edited because it does not relate to other Mycenaean art. It is different compared to the other artworks found in grave A and a. The mask of Agamemnon does not follow the convention of Mycenaean art. Trail states that ‘the mask of Agamemnon does not show any trace to Mycenaean norm or convention”. According to Calder ‘the mask of Agamemnon is stylish and innovative. It is far away from the Mycenaean convention and looks fairly new. Believe the mask of Agamemnon was altered by Schlemiels.
There is not much prove that shows that it was edited, but the ask does not look authentic. William Calder and David Trail try to prove that the mask is a forgery, but they do not have substantial evidence to support their argument. It looks like avgas made in a hurry, and ancient artworks were not made purely of gold. Also believe the mask was edited because Schlemiels was not an honest man, he admitted that he bought some of the objects he claimed to hue found. The mask of Agamemnon should be removed from textbooks because archeologist do not have enough information on it is based on observations and on an individual’s perception Of it.
