Grotesque Head of a "Slave" | Harvard Art Museums

Identification and Creation

Object Number: 1935.38.5
Title: Grotesque Head of a "Slave"
Classification: Sculpture
Work Type: sculpture, statuette
Date: 323-150 BCE
Places: Creation Place: Ancient & Byzantine World, Asia
Period: Hellenistic period
Culture: Greek
Persistent Link: https://hvrd.art/o/298445

Physical Descriptions

Medium: Terracotta
Technique: Handmade
Dimensions: 3.1 cm (1 1/4 in.)

Provenance

Recorded Ownership History: Royal Museum of Art and History, Brussels; gift to Fogg Art Museum, 1935.

Acquisition and Rights

Credit Line: Harvard Art Museums/Arthur M. Sackler Museum, Gift of the Royal Museums of Art and History, Brussels
Accession Year: 1935
Object Number: 1935.38.5
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: Non-Greek style figure, with large, protruding ears (right ear is higher, smaller, and more protruding than the left), arched eyebrows, large hooked nose and heavy lips. Forehead is wrinkled and has a pointed bump. Appears bald, possibly due to a loss or lack of color. Crudely formed. Three small cracks in the neck. (Upper rows of photo, second from left). Attached to metal display rod with hard white substance.
Hard, reddish brown clay with very little mica.

Verification Level

This record was created from historic documentation and may not have been reviewed by a curator; it may be inaccurate or 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

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