SculptureGreek4th century BCE

Protome of Dionysos

4th century BCE

Description

This terracotta object depicts the head of a mature man in relief. Bearded and mustachioed, he also wears a wide, low polos (a high cylindrical headdress or crown), under which his hair parts to each side in waves, with curling ringlets framing his face. On the line dividing his hair and his polos are two piercings that would have allowed this object to be hung. Original coloration is still present: the face is red; eyebrows are black; eyes are black and white; the beard is covered in white. Traces of gray or blue pigment are visible on the polos and the sides of the headdress flanking the hair. Accretion is present across the surface. The terracotta has been mended from several large fragments; there is a loss (missing fragment) from the lower right corner, where traces of glue are visible at the break. The upper and lower left corners are also slightly chipped.

Classification

Sculpture

Technique

Mold-made

Medium

Painted terracotta

Culture

Greek

Period

Classical period

Century

4th century BCE

Division

Asian and Mediterranean Art

Department

Department of Ancient and Byzantine Art & Numismatics

Dimensions

H. 16.8 × W. 14.1 × D. 6.4 cm (6 5/8 × 5 9/16 × 2 1/2 in.)

Provenance

Louis-Joseph-Raphaël Collin [1], Paris, (by 1890-1911), sold; to William A. Clark [2], New York, (by 1911-1925), bequest; to Corcoran Gallery of Art, Washington, D.C., (1926-2018) [3], transferred; to American University Museum, Washington, D.C., (2018-2021), sold; [through Sands of Time, Washington, D.C.]; to Harvard Art Museums, 2022. 1. Louis-Joseph-Raphaël Collin (1850-1916) 2. William Andrews Clark (1839-1925) 3. Following the closure of the Corcoran Gallery in 2014, its collections were physically transferred to the National Gallery of Art (Washington, D.C.); the Corcoran Board of Trustees retained ownership until the collections were officially transferred to and accessioned into other museums’ collections (in 2018, in this case).