Marble female figure

Technical analysis: Multiband imaging, optical microscopy, X-ray fluorescence spectroscopy, Raman spectroscopy.


The figure is made from a fine-grained white marble and is intact except for a small loss to the tip of the right foot and minor losses to the proper left forearm, right arm, right breast, and lower abdomen, which have been restored. Parts of the surface are heavily worn especially on the proper right side of the torso. Numerous encrustations of calcium carbonate adhere to the surface, especially on the back. The figure is carefully proportioned with a long oval head on which a conical nose is centrally positioned. A well-formed neck connects the head to the upper body with its rounded shoulders and arms bent at the elbows, the left folded above the right in typical fashion and framing the breasts. The pubic area is not prominently indicated. Horizontal grooves demarcate the ends of the neck, the division between the upper thighs and the lower abdomen, the knees and the feet. The fingers and toes are not incised. A deep vertical groove defines the space between the legs and is pierced between the calves. On the back, the base of the neck is defined by shallow grooves and the spine is also grooved.

Traces of painted decoration include ghosts of the eyes and actual traces of red pigment identified as cinnabar in the upper and lower neck grooves under the chin. Pat Getz-Gentle identified additional areas with traces of paint in 1989.


Seán Hemingway, Dorothy Abramitis, Federico Carò