Art Talk: Girls Will Be Girls

October 27, 2020
Index Magazine

Art Talk: Girls Will Be Girls

As a field archaeologist, Frances Gallart Marqués is used to touching art and antiquities in the field. Take a closer look with Gallart Marqués as she deconstructs the marble Greek stele of the young girl “Melisto” and explores a companion work, which was meant to be touched in the time it was made. Through touch, Gallart Marqués ascertains important details about the small Greek terracotta sculpture in our collections titled “Doll”—something that could not have been done though sight alone. 

The video is also available in Spanish

This video is part of our Art Talk series, in which our team of curators, conservators, fellows, and graduate students will share short, informal videos that offer an up-close look at works from our collections.  

Led by:
Frances Gallart Marqués, Frederick Randolph Grace Curatorial Fellow in Ancient Art, Division of Asian and Mediterranean Art

Works Explored:
Grave stele of a young girl, “Melisto,” Greek, c. 340 BCE. Marble. Harvard Art Museums/Arthur M. Sackler Museum, Alpheus Hyatt Purchasing and Gifts for Special Uses Funds in memory of Katherine Brewster Taylor, as a tribute to her many years at the Fogg Museum, 1961.86.

“Doll” with truncated limbs, Greek, c. 450 BCE. Terracotta. Harvard Art Museums/Arthur M. Sackler Museum, Gift of Frederick M. Watkins, 1959.192.