Statue of a Mourning Woman
Artist
South Italian
(Greek period, 4th–3rd centuries BCE)
Date4th–3rd century BCE
Mediumterracotta with white slip
Dimensionsapprox.: 100 cm (39 3/8 in.)
ClassificationsSculpture
Credit LineStoddard Acquisition Fund
Terms
Object number2008.50
Label TextThese terracotta sculptures, which represent mourning women, come from chamber tombs at Canosa (ancient Canusium), a town in southeastern Italy. When similar statues were first discovered in the 18OOs, their raised arms were interpreted as gestures of prayer-hence the name orantes, from the Latin orare (to pray). Their varied poses more likely express lament, since they appear to have been placed in pairs around the corpse, sometimes in groups of up to eight figures. The white coating, or slip, is made from white clay, and may have been applied as a base layer for colored pigments that have not survived.On View
On viewCurrent Location
- Exhibition Location Gallery 215
Chinese
11th or 12th century, Northern Song dynasty (960–1127)
Chinese
11th or 12th century, Northern Song dynasty (960–1127)