Hellenistic Terracotta Head of a Goddess with Rayed Diadem, Magna...
Hellenistic Terracotta Head of a Goddess with Rayed Diadem, Magna GraeciaSouthern Europe, Magna Graecia, Hellenistic period, 300 BCE. A large mold-made terracotta head of a woman, her face broad and serene beneath a rayed diadem whose crenellated points crown a mass of deeply striated waves. The hair parts at the center, sweeps back in ridged locks, and falls in long tresses that curl into volutes at the shoulders, framing lidded eyes, arched brows, and full lips drawn into the faintest smile. Disc earrings sit at the lobes and a beaded necklace crosses the throat. The reverse is left open and hollow, the pressed clay bearing the maker's finger drag, indicating a votive plaque or antefix intended for frontal display, likely dedicated at a sanctuary and perhaps representing a goddess rather than a mortal. Size: 9" W x 5.875" H (22.9 cm W x 14.9 cm H).
The Greek colonies of southern Italy and Sicily produced votive terracottas in staggering quantity, pressed from reusable molds so that a single archetype could furnish a sanctuary with hundreds of dedications. Heads of this scale, hollow-backed and finished only on the face, were pinned or set upright in votive deposits at shrines of the great female divinities, Demeter and Persephone above all, whose cults dominated Magna Graecian religious life at Locri, Taranto, and Medma.
The rayed or crenellated diadem broadens the reading. A turreted crown identifies Tyche or a city goddess; a radiate one suggests solar or celestial associations. Combined with the softened Hellenistic modeling, the melting gaze and parted lips descended from Praxitelean sculpture, the type sits comfortably in the later fourth to third centuries BCE, when large-scale coroplastic work in the region reached its technical height.
Provenance: Private NYC. collection, acquired from Explorer Ancient Art, NYC.
SHIPPING: We coordinate worldwide shipping in-house through specialist international forwarders experienced with fine art and antiquities customs manifests. International buyers must confirm, prior to bidding, that their country's customs authority will accept the item. All duties, taxes, clearance fees, and any costs arising from customs delays, seizures, re-export, returns, or loss in transit are the buyer's sole responsibility. Artemis assumes no liability for items refused entry, detained, or lost after export. We cannot ship ancient items to their country of origin (Egyptian to Egypt, Greek to Greece, etc.).
PAYMENT EXCEPTION: For clients not previously established with Artemis, payment for all gold, precious metal, and gemstone lots must be made by bank wire transfer or certified bank check/money order, without exception.
Item #73298Repaired from four large original pieces with restoration over the break lines; nose, upper lip, and a portion of her left eye brow is restored. Scattered root marks and surface deposits.
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Hellenistic Terracotta Head of a Goddess with Rayed Diadem, Magna GraeciaSouthern Europe, Magna Graecia, Hellenistic period, 300 BCE. A large mold-made terracotta head of a woman, her face broad and serene beneath a rayed diadem whose crenellated points crown a mass of deeply striated waves. The hair parts at the center, sweeps back in ridged locks, and falls in long tresses that curl into volutes at the shoulders, framing lidded eyes, arched brows, and full lips drawn into the faintest smile. Disc earrings sit at the lobes and a beaded necklace crosses the throat. The reverse is left open and hollow, the pressed clay bearing the maker's finger drag, indicating a votive plaque or antefix intended for frontal display, likely dedicated at a sanctuary and perhaps representing a goddess rather than a mortal. Size: 9" W x 5.875" H (22.9 cm W x 14.9 cm H).
The Greek colonies of southern Italy and Sicily produced votive terracottas in staggering quantity, pressed from reusable molds so that a single archetype could furnish a sanctuary with hundreds of dedications. Heads of this scale, hollow-backed and finished only on the face, were pinned or set upright in votive deposits at shrines of the great female divinities, Demeter and Persephone above all, whose cults dominated Magna Graecian religious life at Locri, Taranto, and Medma.
The rayed or crenellated diadem broadens the reading. A turreted crown identifies Tyche or a city goddess; a radiate one suggests solar or celestial associations. Combined with the softened Hellenistic modeling, the melting gaze and parted lips descended from Praxitelean sculpture, the type sits comfortably in the later fourth to third centuries BCE, when large-scale coroplastic work in the region reached its technical height.
Provenance: Private NYC. collection, acquired from Explorer Ancient Art, NYC.
SHIPPING: We coordinate worldwide shipping in-house through specialist international forwarders experienced with fine art and antiquities customs manifests. International buyers must confirm, prior to bidding, that their country's customs authority will accept the item. All duties, taxes, clearance fees, and any costs arising from customs delays, seizures, re-export, returns, or loss in transit are the buyer's sole responsibility. Artemis assumes no liability for items refused entry, detained, or lost after export. We cannot ship ancient items to their country of origin (Egyptian to Egypt, Greek to Greece, etc.).
PAYMENT EXCEPTION: For clients not previously established with Artemis, payment for all gold, precious metal, and gemstone lots must be made by bank wire transfer or certified bank check/money order, without exception.
Item #73298Repaired from four large original pieces with restoration over the break lines; nose, upper lip, and a portion of her left eye brow is restored. Scattered root marks and surface deposits.
Estimate
Reserve
Time, Location
Auction House
