Etrurian Terracotta votive head sculpture

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Lot: 106

Etrurian Terracotta votive head sculpture

"Etrurian terracotta sculpture with votive head, S. IV - III BC". Etruscan male head, made of molded terracotta. It represents a man with an ideal face, with a straight mouth and full lips, perfectly combed with his hair collected in thick locks regularly arranged around his face, covered by a veil at the back. The figure also shows a grooved lower band that could represent some type of necklace or textile ornament. The Etruscans produced heads, profiles of faces, hands, feet and other body parts as attached ex-votos in fired clay for votive use. Etruscan art is often of a religious nature and is therefore related to the demands of the Etruscan religion. The Etruscan afterlife was negative, unlike the positive view of ancient Egypt where it was a continuation of earthly life, or the trusting relationships with the gods typical of ancient Greece. The Etruscan gods were indifferent and tended to bring good luck, so the Etruscan religion was centered on their veneration and the worship of the dead. Most of the remains of Etruscan art are found in excavations of cemeteries (as in Cerveteri, Tarquinia, Populonia, Orvieto, Vetulonia, Norchia), which means that we see Etruscan art dominated by representations of religion and in particular the cult funeral. In the clay urns in which the remains of the deceased were kept, there are sculptural elements representing anatomical elements of the deceased, for example, the head-shaped lid. In a later phase, life-size human figures appear reclining on the lid as if it were a bed. The faces denote the influence of archaic Greek sculpture. In opposition to the Greek sculpture in stone, the Etruscan sculpture takes shape in softer materials that allow a more elastic, fluid and rounded modulation, imbuing the figures with a natural spontaneity.

Provenance: collection of the well-known Barcelona jeweler Octavio Sardà. Acquired between 1968 and 1979.

Thermoluminescence test is attached. 29.5cm

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Title

Etrurian terracotta sculpture with votive head, S. IV – III BC

Country

Etruria

Measures

29.5cm

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