Figurine of Isis-Aphrodite

Figurine of Isis-Aphrodite

Date
1st century BC
Dimensions
Height: 130mm
Medium
terracotta, two-part mould, worked on both sides, traces of white, blue and red paint

A syncretic figure of Isis and Aphrodite. The goddess is nude, with slender and balanced proportions, standing with her legs together and her arms lowered along her body. The face with delicate features is framed by hair styled in regular curls, short over the forehead and long falling loosely to the shoulders. The headdress consists of a wide basket (gr. kalathos) placed on a thin wreath of flowers. It is decorated with two diagonally tied ribbons. Remains of paint are preserved between the breasts and on the hip. For a long time, these statues were thought to be “concubines” included in the grave goods of dead men. However, this is contradicted by the crown of Isis (Hathor), which is often worn by this figure. Dunand rightly considers these representations to be the Egyptian Isis (Hathor) combined with the Greek Aphrodite. László Török associates them exclusively with the fertility cult. Both these opinions are not contradictory. These figurines, extremely popular in Greco-Roman Egypt, were treated as vota (gifts), and even, as we can guess from the preserved wedding prenup from the Roman Period, were given as a dowry to brides. The earliest examples of these figurines were found during Polish excavations at Tell-Atrib in a context from the early 2nd century BC.

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