Female figurine
Marble
2600-2500 BCE
Benaki Museum
Details
Culture/Civilisation
Cycladic culture
Theme
Later Civilisations of Land and Sea
Subtheme
The Mediterranean
Case Title
The Mediterranean World
Display Location
Coomaraswamy Hall
Findspot
Cycladic Islands
Accession Number
32530
Description
Is this schematised figure (1) a particular woman?
All women? We do not know. While Harappa was thriving, the Cycladic islands in the Aegean Sea produced thousands of sculptures like this. Perhaps an offering for fertility, to the gods or for the dead, their uniformity suggests a shared belief system across the islands. Sculptures like these influenced 20th century abstract artists.
