Umbrian Votive Statuette

Culture: Italic/Umbrian

Period: 5th century B.C.

Material: Bronze

Dimensions: 9.9 cm high

Price: Sold

Ref: 4195

Provenance: French private collection Dr. J. C., acquired on 1 July 1966 in the gallery “Archéologie” in Paris. With a copy of the original invoice.

Condition: Intact

Description: Highly stylized anthropomorphic bronze statuette from southern Umbria. The plank figure with an elongated, rectangular body, which only has a minimal bulge at hip height. Legs and feet are not accentuated. The short upper body slightly narrowing towards the top. On the sides the arms, which are decorated with grooves, hang semi-circularly down. The elongated head sits directly on the shoulders. The bearded chin is long and tapering. The mouth is horizontally notched, the nose is long and prominent. The eyes sit in relatively deep indentations. An almost contemporarily appearing bronze statuette. See for the type the bronze votive figure in the Museum of Fine Arts Budapest with the inventory number 51.842. Statuettes such as the present one are considered to be the antecedents of the Etruscan votive figures from Volterra, which evolved around 100 years later. The famous example of these elongated bronze statuettes, the 57.3 cm high “Ombra della Sera” (Shadow of the evening), is today in the Museo Etrusco Guarnacci in Volterra, Italy. For many it is considered as the model and inspiration for contemporary artist Alberto Giacometti (1901-1966). Mounted, the base with the collection number 36.