Lot 12E
Greece, ca. 500 to 400 BCE. This is an attractive pair of Greek terracotta figurines, made from molds and with some original bright pigment -- reds, creams, and oranges -- remaining over the white-grey pottery. One depicts a seated figure whose headdress looks like that of a woman; the other is also seated, but appears to be a man in a cloak. Small figures like these seem to have been ubiquitous in Greek life and today we can learn a great deal about their society by looking at them. Their primary purpose was to be religious offerings; excavated Greek temples have yielded abundant quantities of them. Greeks would place the figures in the temple as a prayer for every stage of life: pregnancy, childbirth, going into battle, raising children, etc., and they were available to purchase at the temple entrance. The figure with the pointed hat looks like it was made to be a figure of Hermes, the messenger of the gods and god of commerce and invention; perhaps someone placed him in a temple as a way to bring good fortunte to themselves or add insurance to a financial gamble. A similar figure is held by the Louvre. Size of each: 1.45" W x 3.5" H (3.7 cm x 8.9 cm)
Provenance: Ex- Private New Jersey collection acquired before 1990
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#112951
- Condition: Both have wear and encrustation, but their shapes are clear and there is some pigment remaining on both!
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