Harvard Art Museums > 1935.35.8: Standing Woman, Proto-Phi Type Sculpture Collections Search Exit Deep Zoom Mode Zoom Out Zoom In Reset Zoom Full Screen Add to Collection Order Image Copy Link Copy Citation Citation"Standing Woman, Proto-Phi Type , 1935.35.8,” Harvard Art Museums collections online, Apr 23, 2025, https://hvrd.art/o/291970. Reuse via IIIF Toggle Deep Zoom Mode Download This object does not yet have a description. Identification and Creation Object Number 1935.35.8 Title Standing Woman, Proto-Phi Type Classification Sculpture Work Type sculpture, statuette Date 14th century BCE Places Creation Place: Ancient & Byzantine World, Europe, Mycenae (Argolis) Period Helladic period, Late Helladic III Culture Mycenaean Persistent Link https://hvrd.art/o/291970 Physical Descriptions Medium Terracotta Technique Handmade Dimensions 7.4 × 3.1 cm (2 15/16 × 1 1/4 in.) Acquisition and Rights Credit Line Harvard Art Museums/Arthur M. Sackler Museum, Gift of Miss Bettina J. Kahnweiler Accession Year 1935 Object Number 1935.35.8 Division Asian and Mediterranean Art Contact am_asianmediterranean@harvard.edu Permissions The Harvard Art Museums encourage the use of images found on this website for personal, noncommercial use, including educational and scholarly purposes. To request a higher resolution file of this image, please submit an online request. Descriptions Description Complete figurine in good condition. Standing woman, facing forward, dressed in a long garment. Pinched-out head, flat on top, with large nose, and dotted pallets for eyes. Disk-shaped upper body is edged by plastically modeled arms; the left curls up between the plastic breasts, while the right rests on her abdomen. The lower body is a short tapering cylinder. Slightly concave base flares out with a narrow, rounded lip. Covered in white wash (some extant) and decorated with red pigment. A thick band at the neck is perhaps a necklace. Wavy vertical lines across the chest become straight lines at the stem and might represent the folds of drapery. Solid. Handmade. Pinkish clay, finely levigated and hard-fired. Commentary Phi type figurines, so-called because of their shape’s resemblance to the Greek Letter “phi,” are characteristic Mycenaean products both in their ubiquity and their similarity to contemporary ceramics. Handmade, and stylized in form and decoration, this example is typical of the early stages of the development of the type. It is identifiable by its arms, which are rendered as slight ridges at the edge of the chest, with the left arm at the breasts and the right arm at the stomach. Our example is small and light; it can be held comfortably by placing one’s fingers at the head and base, or alternatively, around the stem. Both approaches leave the head and chest unobstructed for contemplation. Related Objects Object Number 1977.216.2123.57 Title Standing Woman, Phi Type Classification Sculpture Object Number 1977.216.2123.64 Title Standing Woman, Phi Type Classification Sculpture Object Number 1995.1140 Title Standing Woman Holding a Baby to her Breast, Phi Type Classification Sculpture Object Number 1960.495 Title Standing Woman, Phi Type Classification Sculpture Object Number 1960.493 Title Standing Woman, Phi Type Classification Sculpture Object Number 1960.494 Title Standing Woman, Phi Type Classification Sculpture Object Number 1960.492 Title Standing Woman, Phi Type Classification Sculpture Verification Level This record has been reviewed by the curatorial staff but may be incomplete. Our records are frequently revised and enhanced. For more information please contact the Division of Asian and Mediterranean Art at am_asianmediterranean@harvard.edu
