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Bronze head of a griffin

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Bronze head of a griffin

Date:
third quarter of the 7th century B.C.
Culture:
Greek
Medium:
Bronze
Dimensions:
H. 10 3/16 in. (25.8 cm)
Classification:
Bronzes
Credit Line:
Bequest of Walter C. Baker, 1971
Accession Number:
1972.118.54

This artwork is currently on display in Gallery 150

  • Description

    From Olympia

    Bronze cauldrons set on tripods or conical stands were among the most spectacular votive gifts dedicated in Greek sanctuaries from the eighth to the sixth centuries B.C. Cast-bronze griffins' heads often decorated the cauldron rims; they projected outward from the shoulder of the vessel on long necks made of hammered or cast bronze. Some of the dedicated cauldrons were colossal. The Greek historian Herodotus describes one made for King Kroisos of Lydia that could hold 2,700 gallons and another dedicated on the island of Samos that was supported by huge kneeling figures. Over six hundred bronze griffins' heads from cauldrons are known today; most have been found at the sanctuary of Zeus at Olympia or at that of Hera on Samos. This enormous head is one of the finest.

  • Provenance

    From Olympia

  • References

    Mertens, Joan R. 1985. "Greek Bronzes in the Metropolitan Museum of Art." The Metropolitan Museum of Art Bulletin 43(2): no. 9, pp. 8, 13, 20-21, 30-31, 38.

    The Metropolitan Museum of Art. 1987. Greece and Rome. New York: The Metropolitan Museum of Art, no. 20, pp. 34-35.

    Mertens, Joan R. 2002. "An Early Greek Bronze Sphinx Support." Metropolitan Museum Journal 37: pp. 30-31, fig. 18.

  • See also
    What
    Where
    When
    In the Museum
    Heilbrunn Timeline of Art History
130015872

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