Statuette of Cybele on a cart drawn by lions, Imperial, second half of 2nd century a.d.
Roman
Bronze
Technical Glossary
Roman
Bronze
54 3/4 in. (L. 139.1 cm)
Gift of Henry G. Marquand, 1897 (97.22.24)
The cult of the Anatolian mother goddess Kybele was introduced into Rome during the Second Punic War in the late third century B.C. and remained popular until early Christian times. The goddess is shown with her usual attributes, a phiale (libation bowl) in her right hand and a large tympanum (drum) in her left. But instead of flanking her throne as they normally do, here the two oversized lions pull a chariot. This elaborate group comes from a fountain, in which spouts projected from the open mouths of the lions. The original cart, harness, and throne no longer survive; the rear left wheel is a nineteenth-century restoration.
Related
Index Terms
Art Movement/Style
Material and Technique
- Bronze
- Bronze from Europe
- Sculpture in the Round from Europe
- Sculpture in the Round from the Italian Peninsula
Object
Subject Matter/Theme
- Deity
- Feline
- Greek and Roman Deity
- Indigenous Deity
- Indigenous Deity from Europe
- Indigenous Deity from West Asia
- Other Greek and Roman Deities
