Finial of a marble stele (grave marker)

Greek, Attic

On view at The Met Fifth Avenue in Gallery 155

The pair of volutes on this finial is carved with extraordinary sensitivity. The crowning element, which is missing, may have been a palmette or a sphinx. The latter is less likely, given the limited size of the volute block. The reported discovery of this piece near the beautiful fragment with the head of a youth raises the possibility that both originally belonged to the same stele.

Finial of a marble stele (grave marker), Marble, Parian, Greek, Attic

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Finial of a marble stele (grave marker), Marble, Parian, Greek, Attic
Finial of a marble stele (grave marker), Marble, Parian, Greek, Attic

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