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Identification and Creation

Object Number
1973.19
Title
Woman with Diadem
Other Titles
Alternate Title: full cast figure, woman with diadem
Classification
Sculpture
Work Type
statuette, sculpture
Date
n.d.
Places
Creation Place: Unidentified Region
Period
Modern
Culture
Roman
Persistent Link
https://hvrd.art/o/304222

Physical Descriptions

Medium
Leaded brass
Technique
Cast, lost-wax process
Dimensions
12.3 x 4.1 x 2.3 cm (4 13/16 x 1 5/8 x 7/8 in.)
Technical Details

Chemical Composition: ICP-MS/AAA data from sample, Leaded Brass:

Cu, 54.02; Sn, 1.93; Pb, 3.54; Zn, 39.79; Fe, 0.33; Ni, 0.15; Ag, 0.04; Sb, 0.05; As, 0.12; Bi, 0.026; Co, less than 0.005; Au, less than 0.01; Cd, 0.008

J. Riederer

Technical Observations: The patinas of both 1973.18 and 1973.19 are dark green with small spots of black. The corrosion layers are thin, and there is no evidence of long-term burial. White accretions on the surfaces may be applied mud or investment material.

Both figures were cast solid. The modeling and applied patinas of both are similar, and it is likely they came from the same studio. A mold line, probably related to casting the wax models, runs along both sides of each figure. Most of decorative detail was worked directly in the wax models. The zigzag decorations on 1973.18 were created using a tremolo technique on the wax model.


Henry Lie (submitted 2001)

Acquisition and Rights

Credit Line
Harvard Art Museums/Arthur M. Sackler Museum, Gift of Mrs. Dorothy B. Austin
Accession Year
1973
Object Number
1973.19
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
The woman wears a semicircular diadem over her hair, which is partially pulled back, with rolls on the sides, a high bun with sections of braids in the back, and a single wavy lock trailing over the right side of her neck. Her right eye is higher than her left eye, as though the figure is looking down and to the left. The eyes are somewhat deep set—the modeled upper and lower lids are clear. She has a small nose and mouth and pointed chin. The woman is nude except for a mantle that is wrapped around her. Her right arm is held down and close to her side, with one end of the mantle covering her hand. The mantle goes over her right elbow, across her lower back, under her left elbow and is then brought up over most of her torso, with the end hanging over her left wrist. Her left arm is also close to her side, with the forearm held diagonally across her chest, her hand covering her right breast. The legs are modeled separately but joined by metal, as are the feet. Separate toes are cursorily indicated. She stands on a circular base, which also has a small dip between the feet, as 1973.18 does. The body is somewhat muscular, particularly the left shoulder and the right arm.

Lisa M. Anderson

Publication History

  • Susanne Ebbinghaus, ed., Ancient Bronzes through a Modern Lens: Introductory Essays on the Study of Ancient Mediterranean and Near Eastern Bronzes, Harvard Art Museum and Yale University Press (Cambridge, MA, 2014), pp. 78, 89

Subjects and Contexts

  • Ancient Bronzes

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