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Identification and Creation

Object Number
1992.298
Title
Cupid in Flight
Other Titles
Alternate Title: Eros
Classification
Sculpture
Work Type
statuette, sculpture
Date
2nd century CE
Places
Creation Place: Ancient & Byzantine World
Period
Roman Imperial period, Middle
Culture
Roman
Persistent Link
https://hvrd.art/o/300000

Physical Descriptions

Medium
Leaded bronze
Technique
Cast, lost-wax process
Dimensions
5.1 x 3.5 x 2.3 cm (2 x 1 3/8 x 7/8 in.)
Technical Details

Chemical Composition: ICP-MS/AAA data from sample, Leaded Bronze:
Cu, 69.85; Sn, 5.84; Pb, 24.04; Zn, 0.05; Fe, 0.05; Ni, 0.04; Ag, 0.06; Sb, 0.06; As, less than 0.10; Bi, less than 0.025; Co, 0.016; Au, less than 0.01; Cd, less than 0.001
J. Riederer

Technical Observations: The patina is mottled green with polished patches of red and black. The Eros is moderately corroded but is in generally good condition. The object is a solid cast, and the markings for the feathers of the wings were made in the wax model.


Nancy Lloyd (submitted 2001)

Acquisition and Rights

Credit Line
Harvard Art Museums/Arthur M. Sackler Museum, David M. Robinson Fund
Accession Year
1992
Object Number
1992.298
Division
Asian and Mediterranean Art
Contact
am_asianmediterranean@harvard.edu
Permissions

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Descriptions

Published Catalogue Text: Ancient Mediterranean and Near Eastern Bronzes at the Harvard Art Museums
This figure of Cupid (Eros) in flight is nude except for a Phrygian cap (1). Locks of hair emerge from under the cap to frame his face. The eyes, nose, and mouth are rendered somewhat unevenly on his broad face. He carries a curved staff in his right hand, which connects at the bottom to his right leg, and holds his left arm out, palm open. Cupid turns his head to the proper left, while his torso is frontal and bent forward slightly, and his legs are extended to the right, with the right leg down and the left leg raised and bent at the knee. The body from the torso to the legs is rendered in a particularly round, child-like way. His wings, which are extended to indicate flight, are short and curving. The details of the feathers are simple, indicated by semicircular punches and short incisions on the interior. The figure is modeled in the round, but there are very few additional details on the reverse.

In contrast to the Greek Eros, who was often depicted as a nude youth with wings, Roman Cupid generally took on the appearance of a putto, a slightly chubby young child. Cupids are depicted participating in many activities in Roman art, from music and dancing (2) to harvesting and farming (3) to fighting and playing games (4). Cupids (erotes) often appear as attendants to other deities, especially Venus (Aphrodite), and Harvard’s copper alloy Cupid statuettes may have been part of larger statuette groups (5). Cupids are also depicted with ritual accoutrements, such as offering plates or garlands, or in ritual actions such as pouring libations and participating in animal sacrifice (6).

NOTES:
1. Compare Lexicon Iconographicum Mythologiae Classicae Eros 52f (phrygian cap, short wings, putto—perhaps by the same artisan; Paris Br 354, De Ridder p. 56, no. 354, pl. 30); Eros (in per. or.) 81 (one of the two erotes wears a Phrygian cap; Paris, Cab. Med. 250 from Syria, p. 108-109, no. 250).

2. See, for example, LIMC Eros/Amor, Cupido nos. 449-88.

3. See, for example, LIMC Eros/Amor, Cupido nos. 489-527.

4. See, for example, LIMC Eros/Amor, Cupido nos. 230-66.

5. For all examples of cupids in service of deities, see LIMC Eros/Amor, Cupido nos. 589-631; for Venus specifically, see LIMC Eros/Amor, Cupido nos. 589-605. Compare also LIMC Eros (in per. or.) nos. 76-88. For additional examples of Cupid and Venus groups in bronze, see A. de Ridder, Catalogue de la collection de Clercq 3: Les bronzes (Paris, 1905) 52-53, 61-62, 80-81, 87, and 91-92; nos. 61, 80, 113, 124, and 133; pls. 10, 13, 24, 27, and 29.

6. See, for example, LIMC Eros/Amor, Cupido nos. 689-714.

Lisa M. Anderson

Subjects and Contexts

  • Ancient Bronzes
  • Roman Domestic Art

Related Works

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