Figurine

Unknown

ca. 1500–1100 BCE · Ceramic · Ancient Near Eastern Art

At the time that this fragmentary figurine was produced, peoples in Iran had been creating mold-made plaques of nude female figures for over five hundred years. Nude female figurines may originally have been inspired by Mesopotamian productions, but quickly acquired distinctive forms. In the latter half of the second millennium B.C. these figures were depicted grasping their breasts between their thumbs and four fingers. Enough of this figure is preserved to see the emphasis placed on adornment (she wears a rosette necklace, bracelets, and herringbone-patterned shoulder bands that cross through a central piece). Rows of circles running across the pelvis are probably part of the stylized pubic triangle, seen on other figures of this period. In the past, such figures have been interpreted as fertility figures. However, due to their frontal poses, exaggerated body parts, provocative gestures, and richly adorned bodies, they could be interpreted as erotic images.

Artist

Unknown

Date

ca. 1500–1100 BCE

Medium

Ceramic

Culture

Elamite

Department

Ancient Near Eastern Art

Credit line

Gift of Warren A. Silver, 1954