Statuette of Draped Woman

Statuette of a heavily draped woman in a conventional chiton and mantle that reveals little of her body. Although the draped folds are rather repetitive, there are some interesting details such as are the bunching of the thin chiton along the sleeves and the pattern of folds in the hemline of the chiton. There is a little movement in her posture, the right leg is bent and arched, the left leg rooted on the plinth. Bartman believed that the small head, in profile (one sixth of the total height) corresponds to the proportional system, introduced by Lysippos in the later 4th century BC. The inspiration for the statuette probably originated from ancient Greece but was executed in the Roman period. The head also evokes the post classical age in the severe expression. The hair is simply arranged with waves, emanating from the central part and hanging loosely around the face, ending in a low bun. Stray wisps escape in front of the ears and above the forehead and some longer tresses behind the ears fall onto the shoulders. There is a bowtie knot at the top of the crown. Such knots are usually associated with Aphrodite although the clothing of this statue does not match that of an Aphrodite. Blundell and others interpreted the statuette as Ceres and this would correspond to the clothing and the posture of the deity but not the coiffure and the knot at the top of the head. Bartman proposed the combination of a feminine coiffure with the heavy drapery to be relevant to Hygeia or a Muse. However the lack of any atrributes in the statuette make its interpretation difficult. Restorations include the right arm from above the elbow, the edge of the sleeve, the left arm and wrist and hand, parts of the diagonal fold of the drapery. The mantle has also been reworked many of the drapery folds made deeper and evened out. The head was broken and reattached with a sliver of marble. The nose was probably recut as well as the mouth and the jawline.