"Doll" with Truncated Limbs
c. 450 BCE
Description
Complete figurine, in excellent condition. A standing woman, nude, with truncated arms that end above the elbows, and legs that end above the knees. Her hair is parted at the middle, framing the face with well-formed waves. Beyond that it is covered by a long cap, a sakkos, that extends far behind her back. The sakkos is brimmed with a stephane (or metal band) and tied with a ribbon that zig-zags along the cap, and trails the stephane to the proper left ear, falling behind it and disappearing near the middle of the neck. She faces forward with unreadable, Classical features: short, triangular forehead; small, deep-set eyes; straight nose; closed mouth. A rounded chin meets the thick, deep neck at a 90-degree angle. Large shoulders, especially the right; there seems to have been some effort to soften the left shoulder by hand. Small, pointed breasts. Muscular abdomen. Would have been painted originally. White ground extant all over exterior. Dark red pigment remains on hair; black used for the ribbon and a diagonal band across the figure’s back. Hollow body with solid head. Mold-made in two bivalve molds, likely terracotta. Some handmade additions (hair, perhaps breasts). Top heavy. Some attempt to conceal seams on exterior; reinforced along the interior, between the legs, rather than on the sides. Open bottom, perhaps shaped and reinforced to hold two fingers.
Dimensions
15.1 x 6 x 5.4 cm (5 15/16 x 2 3/8 x 2 1/8 in.)
Provenance
Frederick M. Watkins, (by 1953), gift; to Fogg Art Museum, 1956.
Related Artworks
View MoreTerracotta
5th century BCEGreekTerracotta
5th century BCEGreekWhite-silpped terracotta with traces of paint
5th century BCEGreekTerracotta
5th century BCEGreekTerracotta
5th century BCEGreekTerracotta with slip and pigment.
5th-4th century BCEGreekTerracotta, traces of white slip
5th century BCEGreekTerracotta, tan porous clay with large particles of brick-red grog
6th-5th century BCEGreekTerracotta with traces of white pigment in hair
5th century BCEGreekTerracotta, traces of white slip and paint
5th century BCEGreekTerracotta; buff clay, traces of white slip; pink, blue, and red paint
5th century BCEGreekTerracotta
5th century BCEGreek