Greek Canosan Polychrome Figure Nude Eros

About Auction

Live

Ancient | Asian | Ethnographic Art

By Artemis Gallery

May 18, 2023

Set Reminder 2023-05-18 10:00:00 2023-05-18 10:00:00 America/New_York Bidsquare Bidsquare : Ancient | Asian | Ethnographic Art https://www.bidsquare.com/auctions/artemis-gallery/ancient-asian-ethnographic-art-12797
Featuring classical antiquities, ancient, and ethnographic art from cultures encompassing the globe. Egyptian, Greek, Roman, Near Eastern, Asian, Pre-Columbian, Native American, African / Tribal, Oceanic, Spanish Colonial, Fossils, more! All legally acquired, legal to sell. Satisfaction guaranteed. Artemis Gallery info@artemisgallery.com

View Full Catalog (399)

• Lot Description
  **Originally Listed At $750**
  
  Magna Graecia, South Italic Colonies, Apulia, Canosan, Hellenistic Period, ca. mid-4th to early 2nd century BCE. An adorable pottery figure of a seated male child, perhaps wingless Eros - Roman Cupid - the Greek god of love, displaying a round body still pudgy with baby fat and a cherubic visage. Crowned by a diadem atop a luscious, coiled coiffure, he wears only a pair of bracelets and a crossbody strap, likely attached to his quiver. The youthful god leans on his left arm while raising his right, as though attempting to grasp the blue drapery that falls behind him. Eros was the mischievous yet endearing god of love, as well as the minion, constant companion, and, according to some classical writers, son of the goddess Aphrodite. Though he is typically depicted with wings, wingless portrayals of the god did exist in the Hellenistic world, such an example can be found in the Metropolitan Museum of Art, accession number 74.51.1745. A charming example with gorgeously preserved pigments! Size: 2.3" W x 3.1" H (5.8 cm x 7.9 cm)
  
  Figures like this one played an interesting role in Canosan funerary practices as they were placed into Canosan tombs as replacements for large red-figure krater amphorae; first, however, mourners had to carry these figures in funerary processions and keep them present while carrying out rituals at and inside the tomb. Virtually all of the statues known from Canosan tombs depict women. However, scholars believe that they represented goddesses or mourners rather than the gender of the deceased individual; young women played a major role as mourners in this society. The Canosans, like other members of Classical society, believed that the spirits of the dead remained at the tomb and watched over the living. Canosan tombs were frequently re-opened to entomb deceased members of the same familial lineage, and this suggests that these statues were perhaps reused to maintain the spiritual connection between the living and the dead.
  
  Provenance: East Coast collection, New York Gallery, New York City, New York, USA, acquired before 2010
  
  All items legal to buy/sell under U.S. Statute covering cultural patrimony Code 2600, CHAPTER 14, and are guaranteed to be as described or your money back.
  
  A Certificate of Authenticity will accompany all winning bids.
  
  We ship worldwide and handle all shipping in-house for your convenience.
  
  #175737

  Condition

  Light restoration to base for stability. Some minor chipping to small part of base and periphery of drape. Expected small nicks, commensurate with age. Otherwise, excellent with impressive preservation of pigments.
• Shipping Info

  • All shipping is handled in-house for your convenience. Your invoice from Artemis Gallery will include shipping calculation instructions. If in doubt, please inquire BEFORE bidding for estimated shipping costs for individual items.

• Buyer's Premium
  • 26.50 %