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Identification and Creation

Object Number
1992.256.87
Title
Standing Female Figure
Other Titles
Alternate Title: Standing Figure
Classification
Sculpture
Work Type
statuette, sculpture
Date
14th-13th century BCE
Places
Creation Place: Ancient & Byzantine World, Asia, Anatolia
Period
Hittite Empire period
Culture
Syro-Hittite
Persistent Link
https://hvrd.art/o/311829

Physical Descriptions

Medium
Copper alloy
Technique
Cast, lost-wax process
Dimensions
7.5 x 2.6 cm (2 15/16 x 1 in.)
Technical Details

Technical Observations: The statuette is a solid cast. It was probably cast in a two-part mold. The tool marks on the surface all appear to be modern, probably from previous efforts to remove corrosion products. The lower portion of proper left arm is missing, along with parts of the tangs. The proper right leg is bent at the ankle. The surface details are poorly preserved in the greenish-brown patina.


Carol Snow (submitted 2002)

Provenance

Recorded Ownership History
Louise M. and George E. Bates, Camden, ME (by 1971-1992), gift; to the Harvard University Art Museums, 1992.

Acquisition and Rights

Credit Line
Harvard Art Museums/Arthur M. Sackler Museum, Gift of Louise M. and George E. Bates
Accession Year
1992
Object Number
1992.256.87
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 slender statuette with its flat body, delicate downward-turned arms and slender legs and feet may represent a male figure. The head consists of a pointed oval shape within which the nose and mouth are faintly modeled. Its small feet pointing forward bear tangs projecting from the soles. The right foot has been bent backwards slightly at the ankle. Shallow depressions at the groin outline the genitalia, but it is uncertain whether these are meant to indicate a male or female.
The distinctive modeling of the anatomy and proportions of this statuette clearly identify it as a product of one of the prolific workshops that produced votive bronze statuettes for sanctuaries in the Northern Lebanese city of Byblos in the Late Bronze Age. Dozens if not hundreds of similar statuettes have emerged from large caches discovered by French excavators there.

David G. Mitten

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