ClassificationsGreek and Roman Art

Head of a Goddess

CultureRoman

PeriodHellenistic

Date2nd Century BCE

MediumMarble (Paros 1)

Credit LineCarlos Collection of Ancient Art

Dimensions18 1/2 × 14 × 11 in. (47 × 35.6 × 27.9 cm)

Object number2007.001.001

Label TextThis over life-size female head comes from a monumental statue depicting a draped goddess. The head is inclined and turned slightly right, with wavy centrally-parted hair pulled back over the ears. The sculpture was created using the acrolithic technique, in which marble was used for exposed body parts such as the head, forearms and feet, while the drapery and hair were rendered using different materials including wood, limestone, stucco and bronze. The back of this head has been hollowed out and may have been veiled. A cutting at the neck indicates were separately made tresses of hair were also attached. Clues to the statue’s identity include her maturity, the fleshy treatment of the neck, and the tilt of the head, which suggest she may be Ceres, the matronly goddess of agriculture and grain.

Exhibition HistoryMCCM Galleries, July-August 2007
MCCM Permanent Collection Reinstallation, October 2007 - August 26, 2013
MCCM Permanent Collection Reinstallation, September 25, 2013 - Present
Published ReferencesChristie's London, Fine Antiquities (Tuesday 16 July 1985), 111, number 463.
Christoph Reusser, Der Fidestempel auf dem Kapitol in Rom und seine Ausstattung: ein Beitrag zu den Ausgrabungen an der Via del Mare und um das Kapital 1926-1943 (Roma: "L'Erma" Di Bretschneider, 1993), 104, note 61.
Sotheby's New York, Antiquities (December 6, 2006), 30-31, lot 35.
Bo Emerson, "A Herculean Try for Goddess," The Atlanta Journal-Constitution, January 2, 2007.

ProvenanceWith Christie's London, July 16, 1985, lot 463. With Antiquaria Gallery, London, England. Purchased by MCCM from Sotheby's New York, December 6, 2006, lot 35.

Status

On view

Collections