Archaic II
Terracotta figure
Man or monkey? The distinction is minimal in this spontaneous, engaging work. Seated with one foot over the other, the figure is eating or smelling what is probably a piece of fruit. Although Cypriot terracottas are often summarily executed, they clearly represent a medium that was used to capture a momentary or unusual subject, just as today we might make a snapshot or rapid sketch. H. 4 1/16 in. (10.3 cm)
Date
600 - 480 BC
Accession No.
74.51.1640
Collection
Metropolitan Museum of Art
Provenance
References
- Cesnola, Luigi Palma di. 1894. A Descriptive Atlas of the Cesnola Collection of Cypriote Antiquities in the Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York, Vol. 2. pl. XI.82, Boston: James R. Osgood and Company.Metropolitan Museum of Art. 1895. The Terracottas and Pottery of the Cesnola Collection of Cypriote Antiquities in Halls 4 and 15. no. 240, p. 22, New York: The Metropolitan Museum of Art.Myres, John L. 1914. Handbook of the Cesnola Collection of Antiquities from Cyprus. no. 2067, p. 342, New York: The Metropolitan Museum of Art.Karageorghis, Vassos. 1995. The Coroplastic Art of Ancient Cyprus, Vol. 4. no. III(iii)2, p. 137, pl. LXXIX.5, Nicosia: Foundation Anastasios G. Leventis.Karageorghis, Vassos, Joan Mertens, and Marice E. Rose. 2000. Ancient Art from Cyprus: The Cesnola Collection in The Metropolitan Museum of Art. no. 258, p. 159, New York: The Metropolitan Museum of Art.Karageorghis, Vassos, Gloria Merker, and Joan R. Mertens. 2016. The Cesnola Collection of Cypriot Art : Terracottas. no. 154, pp. 91, 257, Online Publication, [CD-Rom 2004], New York: The Metropolitan Museum of Art.