Mycenaean Figurine: Fragmentary Phi Shaped Figurine
Inv. No.: 82.035
Provenance: Mycenae
Date: c. 1300 BC
Height: 58mm
Diameter: 45mm
Gift of Dr Gertrude Langer.
The upper half of a Mycenaean female figure, probably a representation of a goddess derived from Crete. This type of figure is common and is known as a "Phi" figure because of the resemblance between its shape and the form of the Greek letter F. The body is flattened with rounded sides suggesting folded arms; conical breasts are added to the front. The head is shaped by pinching clay to form a nose. The goddess wears a polos with a flat top and has a plait (broken in the middle) down her back. Such figures usually also wear a long, straight skirt. The eyes and decoration on the body are painted in red.
Function:
Probably a representation of a goddess, this figurine could be used for domestic, votive or funerary purposes.
Manufacture:
A hand-made statuette.
Decoration:
- The polos, the front edge of the face and the eyes are painted in red.
- Red vertical wavy lines decorate the body.
Bibliography:
French, E., "The Development of Mycenaean Terracotta Figurines", Annual of the British School at Athens, No. 66 (1971), 101-178 (especially 108-123).
Higgins, R., Minoan and Mycenaean Art, revised edition, London, Thames and Hudson, 1981, 124-127.
Higgins, R. A., Greek Terracotta Figures, London, British Museum, 1969, 12-13.
Higgins, R. A., Greek Terracottas, London, Methuen, 1967, xlix-liv, 1-5, 13-14.
Nicholls, R. V., "Greek Votive Statuettes and Religious Continuity, c. 1200-700 BC", Auckland Classical Essays Presented to E. M. Blaiklock, ed. B. F. Harris, Auckland, Auckland University Press and Oxford, Oxford University Press, 1970, 1-37.
Comparanda:
Green, J. R., Antiquities: A description of the Classics Department Museum in The Australian National University, Canberra, Canberra, Faculty of Arts, The Australian National University, 1981, Inv. No. 65.05, p. 82.
Higgins, R., Minoan and Mycenaean Art, revised edition, London, Thames and Hudson, 1981, Fig. 151.
Higgins, R. A., Greek Terracottas, London, Methuen, 1967, Plate 4, B and F.