Inventory number
Ακρ. 1352
Artist
Praxiteles
Category
Sculpture
Period
Classical Period
Date
Around 330 BC
Dimensions
Height: 0.56 m
Length: 0.46 m
Width: 0.43 m
Weight: 150 kg
Material
Marble from Paros
Location
First Floor, North
It was found in 1839 in the area of the Sanctuary of Artemis Brauronia, near the altar of the Sanctuary of Athena Hygeia. The head comes from an acrolithic; larger-than-life, statue which most probably depicted the goddess seated and is thought to have been the cult statue of Artemis Brauronia. It is mentioned by the traveller Pausanias who saw it on the Acropolis and attributes it to the sculptor Praxiteles.
The marks on her face were probably made by the Christians at the time when they were trying to destroy the ancient idols. Her hair is gathered at the sides in two long braids that cross each other on top of her head, while a third lies along her central parting. This was a hairstyle common among young children; and suitable for a goddess who associated with them. As the hole on her left earlobe shows, the goddess would have worn earrings.
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