Marble female figure
On loan to The Met
This work of art is currently on loan to the museum.Technical analyses: Ultraviolet-induced visible luminescence examination, optical microscopy
This thin, flat ambiguous figure is complete with only a mended break at the neck. It consists of an oblong head with a flat crown, thick brow, deeply-set eyes and oblong nose in relief. A long thick neck slightly tapers upward and expands downward toward uneven rounded shoulders. Thick stubs indicate arms and two rudimentary bulbous thighs delineated by an incision that extends from the mid-torso. No other appendages are indicated. The body recalls some very abstract Louros-type figures. (1) Otherwise, it is a unique work by an unskilled craftsman.
Sandy MacGillivray and Dorothy Abramitis
(1) Thimme, Jürgen, ed. 1977, Art and Culture of the Cyclades: Handbook of an Ancient Civilisation. p. 240, cat, no. 91, Karlsruhe: C. F. Müller.
This thin, flat ambiguous figure is complete with only a mended break at the neck. It consists of an oblong head with a flat crown, thick brow, deeply-set eyes and oblong nose in relief. A long thick neck slightly tapers upward and expands downward toward uneven rounded shoulders. Thick stubs indicate arms and two rudimentary bulbous thighs delineated by an incision that extends from the mid-torso. No other appendages are indicated. The body recalls some very abstract Louros-type figures. (1) Otherwise, it is a unique work by an unskilled craftsman.
Sandy MacGillivray and Dorothy Abramitis
(1) Thimme, Jürgen, ed. 1977, Art and Culture of the Cyclades: Handbook of an Ancient Civilisation. p. 240, cat, no. 91, Karlsruhe: C. F. Müller.
Artwork Details
- Title: Marble female figure
- Period: Early Cycladic I
- Date: ca. 2800–2700 BCE
- Culture: Cycladic
- Medium: Marble
- Dimensions: Height: 6 3/8 in. (16.2 cm)
Width: 2 1/2 in. (6.3 cm)
Depth: 9/16 in. (1.5 cm)
Thickness: 9/16 in. (1.5 cm) - Classification: Stone Sculpture
- Credit Line: Leonard N. Stern Collection, Loan from the Hellenic Republic, Ministry of Culture
- Object Number: L.2022.38.54
- Curatorial Department: Greek and Roman Art