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Bronze head of a griffin

third quarter of the 7th century BCE
Not on view
Restituted
This artwork was restituted in February 2025. It is no longer in the museum’s collection.
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.

Artwork Details

Object Information
  • Title: Bronze head of a griffin
  • Date: third quarter of the 7th century BCE
  • Culture: Greek
  • Medium: Bronze
  • Dimensions: H. 10 3/16 in. (25.8 cm)
  • Classification: Bronzes
  • Credit Line: Bequest of Walter C. Baker, 1971
  • Curatorial Department: Greek and Roman Art

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Gold rosette with the head of a griffin, Gold, Greek, Rhodian ?
Gold rosette with the head of a griffin
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Bronze cauldron, Bronze, Greek, South Italian, Campanian
Bronze cauldron
Greek, South Italian, Campanian
5th century BCE
Bronze griffin attachment, Bronze, amber perhaps, Etruscan
Bronze griffin attachment
Etruscan
ca. 600–575 BCE
Bronze griffin attachment from a cauldron, Bronze, Greek
Bronze griffin attachment from a cauldron
Greek
mid-7th century BCE
Terracotta conical lekythos (vase for oil), Terracotta, Greek, Corinthian
Terracotta conical lekythos (vase for oil)
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ca. 700 BCE

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