Female Figure of the Early Spedos Type

2700–2500 B.C.

Medium

Marble with pigment

Dimensions

49.5 × 9 cm

Status

In Museum Collection

Collect24 Art ID

C24-237968

Facing forward with her arms crossed, this stylized female figure is characteristic of the sculpture of the Cyclades in the mid-2000s B.C. Scholars have divided Early Cycladic sculpture into groups or types indicating stylistic and chronological developments. This female figure is of the folded-arm, early Spedos type. Named after an Early Cycladic cemetery on this island of Naxos, the Spedos variety is the most prolific category of canonical Cycladic figures, and has the widest distribution within the Cyclades and beyond. This early example shows the typical traits of elongated proportions, a lyre-shaped head, and a deep cleft, only partially cut through, between the legs. Even though her legs are placed together, the figure’s feet are angled downwards, so she would not have been able to stand on her own. The sculptor carved incised lines in the marble to define the fingers, toes, and abdomen. Her nose is modeled in relief, but the rest of her facial features were originally painted. Red circles on either side of her head form ears, and a row of dots below the nose may represent her mouth. Additional rows of red dots running across her forehead and cheeks may be decorative face pa…