Greece, Hellenistic, ca. late 4th to 2nd century BCE. A sexy mold-made terracotta figure of a standing woman, perhaps the goddess Aphrodite. She holds a fragmentary fan in her right hand, and wears only a himation that falls off her shoulders to pool around one lower arm and her lower body. Her hair is arranged in a pretty, wide chignon at the nape of her neck. She is leaning against a short column, her head tilted downward, her body artfully arranged in a sensual pose that emphasizes her figure. Size: 3.1" W x 7.5" H (7.9 cm x 19 cm)
During the Hellenistic Period, Greeks had access knowledge about the past through institutions like the Library of Alexandria, creating a sense of history and connection to the Greeks who had come before them. Prominent Hellenistic art collectors commissioned pieces based on public statues from the earlier Classical Period, and smaller, more available art forms like this sculpture echo the naturalistic, detailed classical style. Terracotta figures like this one have been found in private dwellings where they may have been part of a shrine or had a religious purpose.
Provenance: private Houston, Texas, USA collection; ex-Bonhams London Antiquities Auction, 8 May, 2013, part of lot 157; ex-Joseph Klein collection, formed in New York, New York, USA between 1941 and 1980, thence by descent
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#132840
Condition
Repaired at neck. One arm is missing. Small chips commensurate with age. Nice aged deposits, especially on the lower part of the skirt.