Amber Chariot
One of the stories is that ambers are fossilized tears of Heliad, Faeton’s sisters who was the son of the sun god. Harald Popkiewicz inspired by mythical history and sunny stone, created a unique object that can be admired in our Museum.
Spring has come to the Amber Museum, due to a sunny chariot by Harald Popkiewicz, illuminating the Museum.
“Chariot” was created in 2006. For 12 years it was part of the permanent exhibition of the Amber Museum in Gdańsk. Since April, Harald Popkiewicz’s work can be admired at the Amber Museum in Krakow.
At a time when the origin of amber could not be scientifically explained, its difference from other stones – the forest smell, extraordinary lightness, unusual colour – the answer to the bothering question was sought in religion and folk tales.
Greek mythology tries to explain the origin of amber in the myth of Phaethon, the mortal son of Helios and the sea nymph Clymene. Phaethon grew up in the kingdom of the mortal Merops, his mother’s husband. He doubted that the blood of the sun god ran in his veins. To prove to himself that he was the son of divine Helios, he stood before his father and asked him to grant one wish: permission to drive the sun chariot. Having promised to grant the wish, Helios could not go back on his word and agreed to Phaethon’s dangerous whim.
The son of the sun lacked the skill of driving with narrow-winged horses pulling a chariot. Despite his father’s warnings, he left the trail marked out on the blue vault – the horses were terrified of the tense Sagittarius arc and approached the Earth too much, which threatened the fire of heaven and earth. Helpless Helios could not help his son, he did not want to expose himself to the wrath of other gods. Zeus threw a lightning strike to prevent catastrophe, and he fell into the Eridan River. His sisters Heliada mourned his brother while they were lying on the banks of the mythical river until the gods did not have mercy over them turning them into poplars, and their tears into amber drops.
The silver chariot is an elaborate fitting for the magnificent milky lump of amber symbolizing the Sun. Inspiration for the creation of the car was suggested to the artist by his sons, who are archaeologists by education. These were publications on miniatures of ritual bronze carts discovered in northern Europe. The ox pulling the mythical cart was made of a piece of black oak found on the beach in Mikoszewo, and then was impregnated with beeswax. The silhouette of an ox resembles rock paintings from thousands of years ago. Maybe this ox is a reference to the holy cows inhabiting Trinakria, the island of Helios mentioned in Homer’s Odyssey?
Harald Popkiewicz is one of the best-known Polish amber artists. Since 1973 the natural shapes of amber have inspired him to create interesting three-dimensional forms in silver and amber. His sons Eryk and Olaf Popkiewicz have long shared their father’s passion for amber.
Author: Karolina Drąg
