1932.56.16: Nude Woman Holding a Vessel
SculptureIdentification and Creation
- Object Number
- 1932.56.16
- Title
- Nude Woman Holding a Vessel
- Other Titles
- Alternate Title: Aphrodite
- Classification
- Sculpture
- Work Type
- sculpture, statuette
- Date
- n.d.
- Places
- Creation Place: Unidentified Region
- Period
- Modern
- Culture
- Unidentified culture
- Persistent Link
- https://hvrd.art/o/303660
Physical Descriptions
- Medium
- Leaded brass
- Technique
- Cast, lost-wax process
- Dimensions
- 8.3 x 2.4 x 1.9 cm (3 1/4 x 15/16 x 3/4 in.)
- Technical Details
-
Chemical Composition: ICP-MS/AAA data from sample, Leaded Brass:
Cu, 72.83; Sn, 1.26; Pb, 2.48; Zn, 22.66; Fe, 0.35; Ni, 0.08; Ag, 0.05; Sb, 0.13; As, 0.16; Bi, less than 0.025; Co, less than 0.005; Au, less than 0.01; Cd, 0.002
J. RiedererTechnical Observations: The patina is light green and soft. The heavy layers of green corrosion appear modern, and no underlying red corrosion layer is present. The details in the face are well preserved, but the softened features give the appearance of an object that was cast from a mold taken from an existing copper alloy object. Analysis shows that the alloy is 22% zinc, an unlikely concentration for an antiquity.
Henry Lie (submitted 2012)
Provenance
- Recorded Ownership History
- Dr. Harris Kennedy, Milton, MA (by 1932), gift; to the William Hayes Fogg Art Museum, 1932.
Acquisition and Rights
- Credit Line
- Harvard Art Museums/Arthur M. Sackler Museum, Gift of Dr. Harris Kennedy, Class of 1894
- Accession Year
- 1932
- Object Number
- 1932.56.16
- Division
- Asian and Mediterranean Art
- Contact
- am_asianmediterranean@harvard.edu
- Permissions
-
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Descriptions
Published Catalogue Text: Ancient Mediterranean and Near Eastern Bronzes at the Harvard Art Museums
This standing female appears to be nude, indicating that she might be meant to represent Aphrodite or a nymph, although the statuette may also be modern. Her head is tilted slightly up and to her left, while her torso is frontal and her legs tip slightly to the right. The legs are connected, except at the knees where there is a small separation between them; her feet are pressed together on what may be the remains of a base. Her left leg is locked, while her right knee is bent, and her right foot is slightly behind the left. Viewed from the back, the woman stands in an S-curve. The facial features are heavy, with eyes, eyebrows, small pointed nose, narrow jaw, and chin all crisp. Her hair is parted in the middle and arranged in loose waves around her face; the chignon set in the middle of the back of her head, interrupting the flow of hair around it, has several short lines on it radiating from the center. The woman holds a C-shaped object under her left arm, with her right hand grasping the circular upper terminal and her left hand grasping the lower. Fingers and toes are indicated by incisions.
NOTES:
1. Two figures so similar to the Harvard piece that all three must be the product of the same workshop, if not the same mold, are in the Civico Museo Archeologico “Giovio,” Como; see M. Bolla and G. P. Tabone, Bronzistica figurata preromana e romana del Civico Museo Archeologico “Giovio” di Como (Como, 1996) 292, nos. B 73-74.
Lisa M. Anderson
Subjects and Contexts
- Ancient Bronzes
Verification Level
This record has been reviewed by the curatorial staff but may be incomplete. Our records are frequently revised and enhanced. For more information please contact the Division of Asian and Mediterranean Art at am_asianmediterranean@harvard.edu