COLLECTION NAME:
The AMICA Library
mediaCollectionId
AMICO~1~1
The AMICA Library
Collection
true
AMICA ID:
DMA_.1982.34
amicoid
DMA_.1982.34
AMICA ID
false
AMICA Library Year:
2003
aly
2003
AMICA Library Year
false
Object Type:
Decorative Arts and Utilitarian Objects
oty
Decorative Arts and Utilitarian Objects
Object Type
false
Creator Nationality:
Japan
crc
Japan
Creator Nationality
false
Creator Name-CRT:
Japan
crt
Japan
Creator Name-CRT
false
Title:
Cup
otn
Cup
Title
false
View:
Full View
rid
Full View
View
false
Creation Date:
A.D. 17th Century
oct
A.D. 17th Century
Creation Date
false
Creation Start Date:
1600
ocs
1600
Creation Start Date
false
Creation End Date:
1699
oce
1699
Creation End Date
false
Materials and Techniques:
Porcelain, underglaze blue, Nabeshima
omd
Porcelain, underglaze blue, Nabeshima
Materials and Techniques
false
Dimensions:
Unmeasured
met
Unmeasured
Dimensions
false
AMICA Contributor:
Dallas Museum of Art
oon
Dallas Museum of Art
AMICA Contributor
false
Owner Location:
Dallas, Texas, USA
oop
Dallas, Texas, USA
Owner Location
false
ID Number:
1982.34
ooa
1982.34
ID Number
false
Credit Line:
Dallas Museum of Art, gift of Mr. and Mrs. Richard D. Haynes
ooc
Dallas Museum of Art, gift of Mr. and Mrs. Richard D. Haynes
Credit Line
false
Rights:
orl
<a href="http://www.DallasMuseumofArt.org"target="_new">http://www.DallasMuseumofArt.org</a>
Rights
false
Context:
This mold-made head is approximately life size and exemplifies the beauty of female youth. It was the primary element of an architectural antefix designed to cover one of the end-tiles along the eaves of a roof. Originally the head was crowned with a diadem, now lost, and large Etruscan disk-shaped earrings were once attached to the ears. The hair over the brow and flanking the face has been molded in a rippling pattern enhanced by undulating lines of black paint to create a wavy effect. Large, staring eyes, accented by raised eyebrows and enhanced with blue paint (now a dull lavender), contribute significantly to the motionless frontality of the head. The double iris of each eye testifies to the artist's preoccupation with decoration over total naturalism. The intensity of the powerful gaze is muted by a subtle smile and the soft modeling of the face, with its delicately rendered nose and fleshy cheeks. An uninhibited use of bright colors, typical of Etruscan painting, contrasts with the powdery white face to create a conscious vitality and an appealing freshness nearly as effective today as it must have been in antiquity. The high brow appears to offset the balance of the face but would not have had this effect when seen at a sharp angle from far below the roofline in its original setting.Antefixes with female heads were generally arranged alternately with those having the heads of satyrs, the promiscuous companions of Dionysus, god of wine, drama, and ecstasy. The female images represented maenads, "crazed women" taken with the spirit of Dionysus, who normally cavorted with satyrs in Classical mythology. The mixing of male and female elements in the imagery of the antefixes alludes to the dynamic forces of nature from which Dionysus's power emanates. The Etruscans, continuously responsive to Greek artistic influences, became familiar with the cult of Dionysus and the motifs of satyrs and maenads through the Greek colonies of Campania in southern Italy. They would have considered the satyr and maenad heads as guardians, protective devices projecting from the roofline to ward off evil from the confines of the building.The exact provenance of this head is unknown, but there is evidence to support the belief that it may have been made in Caere (modern Cerveteri). Etruscan Caere was located a short distance northwest of Rome. Although a number of Etruscan towns manufactured terracotta sculpture, Caere was renowned for its abundant and aesthetically pleasing architectural terracottas. A rapid building program in southern Etruria during the latter half of the sixth century B.C. was met by an outpouring of Caeretan architectural terracotta sculptures. Terracotta sculptural decoration on Etruscan buildings included several forms, among which were antefixes, "acroteria" (roof ridge-line dcor), gable decoration, and continuous figured friezes. The invention of the antefix head, however, is generally believed to have occurred in Corinth. Greeks from Corinth are known to have settled in Tarquinia, north of Caere, in the seventh century B.C., and Corinthian trade dominated the Etruscan market during this time. The primary port city of Caere, Pyrgi (modern Santa Severa), has a Greek name and was perhaps founded by Greeks, who called it Agylla. This Etruscan town was wealthy enough to establish a treasury at Delphi and enjoyed the prosperity gained by exploiting the metal deposits in the nearby Tolfa region. This affluence is substantiated by the opulent tumulus burials outside the city. The abundant wealth of Caere supported an active terracotta industry that was highly receptive to Greek artistic influence."Gods, Men, and Heroes," page 74
cxd
This mold-made head is approximately life size and exemplifies the beauty of female youth. It was the primary element of an architectural antefix designed to cover one of the end-tiles along the eaves of a roof. Originally the head was crowned with a diadem, now lost, and large Etruscan disk-shaped earrings were once attached to the ears. The hair over the brow and flanking the face has been molded in a rippling pattern enhanced by undulating lines of black paint to create a wavy effect. Large, staring eyes, accented by raised eyebrows and enhanced with blue paint (now a dull lavender), contribute significantly to the motionless frontality of the head. The double iris of each eye testifies to the artist's preoccupation with decoration over total naturalism. The intensity of the powerful gaze is muted by a subtle smile and the soft modeling of the face, with its delicately rendered nose and fleshy cheeks. An uninhibited use of bright colors, typical of Etruscan painting, contrasts with the powdery white face to create a conscious vitality and an appealing freshness nearly as effective today as it must have been in antiquity. The high brow appears to offset the balance of the face but would not have had this effect when seen at a sharp angle from far below the roofline in its original setting.Antefixes with female heads were generally arranged alternately with those having the heads of satyrs, the promiscuous companions of Dionysus, god of wine, drama, and ecstasy. The female images represented maenads, "crazed women" taken with the spirit of Dionysus, who normally cavorted with satyrs in Classical mythology. The mixing of male and female elements in the imagery of the antefixes alludes to the dynamic forces of nature from which Dionysus's power emanates. The Etruscans, continuously responsive to Greek artistic influences, became familiar with the cult of Dionysus and the motifs of satyrs and maenads through the Greek colonies of Campania in southern Italy. They would have considered the satyr and maenad heads as guardians, protective devices projecting from the roofline to ward off evil from the confines of the building.The exact provenance of this head is unknown, but there is evidence to support the belief that it may have been made in Caere (modern Cerveteri). Etruscan Caere was located a short distance northwest of Rome. Although a number of Etruscan towns manufactured terracotta sculpture, Caere was renowned for its abundant and aesthetically pleasing architectural terracottas. A rapid building program in southern Etruria during the latter half of the sixth century B.C. was met by an outpouring of Caeretan architectural terracotta sculptures. Terracotta sculptural decoration on Etruscan buildings included several forms, among which were antefixes, "acroteria" (roof ridge-line dcor), gable decoration, and continuous figured friezes. The invention of the antefix head, however, is generally believed to have occurred in Corinth. Greeks from Corinth are known to have settled in Tarquinia, north of Caere, in the seventh century B.C., and Corinthian trade dominated the Etruscan market during this time. The primary port city of Caere, Pyrgi (modern Santa Severa), has a Greek name and was perhaps founded by Greeks, who called it Agylla. This Etruscan town was wealthy enough to establish a treasury at Delphi and enjoyed the prosperity gained by exploiting the metal deposits in the nearby Tolfa region. This affluence is substantiated by the opulent tumulus burials outside the city. The abundant wealth of Caere supported an active terracotta industry that was highly receptive to Greek artistic influence."Gods, Men, and Heroes," page 74
Context
false
Related Image Identifier Link:
DMA_.1982_34.tif
ril
DMA_.1982_34.tif
Related Image Identifier Link
false