Description
| ITEM | Statuette of a seated woman with inscription behind |
| MATERIAL | Terracotta |
| CULTURE | Greek, Hellenistic period |
| PERIOD | 3rd – 1st Century B.C |
| DIMENSIONS | 140 mm x 53 mm |
| CONDITION | Good condition |
| PROVENANCE | Ex English private collection, Sussex, mid-20th century private collection, from late mother who was Greek |
This Hellenistic terracotta statuette depicting a seated woman reflects the refined stylistic traditions popular across the Mediterranean during the 4th to 2nd centuries BC. Crafted using bivalve terracotta molds and finished with hand-modeled details, figurines of this type—often associated with the famous “Tanagra” style—emphasize quiet elegances and secular domesticity. The figure is typically shown seated gracefully on a rock or chair (klismos), wrapped in a thin, heavily draped chiton and a voluminous himation (cloak) that accentuates the contours of her body. After firing, the fine clay was covered in a white slip and painted with vibrant mineral pigments, traces of which often survive in the folds of drapery or hair.
The Greek inscription incised into the reverse or back plaque of the statuette before firing, serves as an important epigraphic marker for understanding Hellenistic workshop organization. Such inscriptions on terracotta figurines generally denote either the signature of the master coroplast (the artisan or workshop owner responsible for producing the mold) or, less frequently, the name of the owner or dedicator.
