Essay On Cycladic Figure

Stone sculpture, as a medium, dates back to as early as 25,000 BCE and continued on as a popular form of artwork throughout history, continuing into modern times. Thus, the breadth of selection for pieces to compare is vast; however, the Cycladic “standing” female figure and a Grecian statue of Aphrodite stand out as being two sculptures that both display a shift in the medium of stone sculpture and in art history as a whole. The “standing” female figure is a smaller piece done in the Cycladic style by a Bastis Master from Greece, belonging to the Keros-Syros culture. It dates between 2600 and 2400 BCE, is made of marble, and can be found in the Metropolitan Museum of Art in gallery 151 under the accession number 68.148. The Status of Aphrodite is a Roman marble copy of a larger bronze Greek sculpture, created in the Imperial or Hellenistic style in the Italian Peninsula, belonging to the Roman culture. It dates between the first and second centuries AD, is made of marble, and can be found in the Metropolitan Museum of Art in gallery 162 under the accession number 52.11.5. Cycladic sculpture consisted of primarily naked female figures, all “standing” in the same pose: …show more content…
In fact, this particular type of sculpture was among the most commonly created in Cycladic art. This one was found in a tomb, and despite being labeled as a “standing” female figure, it is technically unable to stand as its feet dangle in a way that restrict it to only being able to lie down. There is no firm agreement among archaeologists as to what the purpose of these figures were, however, there is a popular proposition that they may be associated with an offering, or in some way represent fertility. Unlike the Aphrodite, the Cycladic figure is not necessarily decorative. The Aphrodite is masterfully sculpted, despite being a Roman marble copy of an originally Greek bronze statue, and was meant to look beautiful and act as a