Etruscan Terracotta Head of a Boy, ex-Arte Primitivo

**Originally Listed At $1500**

Classical World, Etruria, ca. 700 to 500 BCE. A realistic pottery head of a young child, with a rounded face, full cheeks, a dimpled smile, incised wavy short hair, and deepset, lifelike eyes. The pottery is a rich, earthy red that has gained beautiful deposits over the years, but when first made, this item would have been painted bright colors to give it a more natural appearance. This head was probably part of a funerary portrait or memorial. In the Etruscan world as throughout antiquity - indeed until the 20th century - rates of childhood mortality were incredibly high. A study of the well-excavated Etruscan graveyard at Tarquinia found that burials of young children were rare - implying that it was a special or elite child that would earn a grave in this society (as in many early societies). Who might this head have represented? Size: 5" L x 5" W x 6" H (12.7 cm x 12.7 cm x 15.2 cm); 8.25" H (21 cm) on included custom stand.

Provenance: private Florida, USA collection; purchased March 2005 from Arte Primitivo, Lot 50; ex-Alex Gordon collection, New York, USA

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#146413
Condition Report: Head is a fragment from a larger sculpture, with a break mid-neck. Small losses from tip of nose and top of head. Some chips, nicks, scratches, and deposits on surface commensurate with age. Old collection label handwritten in black ink low on the back of the neck.