Iberian Peninsula to the indus

 Journal of Hellenic 
Studies
, 96, 1946, p. 115 and in 
Bulletin de 
Correspondences Helléniques,
71–72, 1947–
1948, p. 440 with photo. Weinberg 1951, no. 
7, p. 124; See Zachos 1990, p. 34 and fig. p. 
33; Zachos 1990 and Zachos 1996 (both with 
photo). Weinberg 1976, no. 21, p. 59.
14
Getz-Preziosi 1990a, no. 2, p. 6 (with 
previous bibliography). The piece appears as 
Weinberg 1951, no. 4, p. 123 and Weinberg 
1976, no. 29, p. 60.
15
Getz-Preziosi 1990b, no. 8a, pp. 13–15 with 
previous bibliography (alleged provenance 
is Euboea or the east coast of Attica 
opposite, near Porto Raphti). In Thimme 
1976, under catalogue no. 4, it is mentioned 
as belonging to a Swiss private collection. 
This piece does not appear in Weinberg 
1976.
16
Although the shape of the upper arm is 
not so clear on the front of Shelby White no. 
2, it stands out from the back.
17
For a much wider comparison of Neolithic 
figurines, see Weinberg 1951, pp. 124–133; 
Weinberg 1976, pp. 54–58.
18
The Saliagos “Fat Lady” was found during 
excavations, but in a square beyond the built 
structures without any significant information 
regarding its context of use.
19
On these questions, see Marangou 1996a. 
For an overview of Neolithic sites and 
artefacts from the Cyclades, Renfrew 1972, 
pp. 507–509; for a brief presentation of the 
Neolithic culture in the Greek world, Lichter 
2011, pp. 32–40 with bibliography.
References: 
Hogarth 1927, pp. 56, 59–60 and 
fig. VIIa, IXc.; Verhoogen 1930; Weinberg 
1951, p. 123, no. 5.; Renfrew 1972, p. 509; 
Weinberg 1976, p. 58 and list no. 19, p. 59; 
Thimme 1976, cat. 2, p. 419 and p. 210, fig. 
2; Getz-Gentle 2011, p. 13, fig. 3.

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107
106
10
Standing SteatopygouS 
figure
Cyclades
Neolithic period
(late V millennium BC)
Shell, H. 5.7 cm, W. 3.3 cm
Private Collection, UK
Bibliography:
Thimme 1977, no. 9; 
Getz-Gentle 2011, no. 2.
Carved from the central axis of 
a conical sea shell, this exquisite 
apparition is a perfect example of 
the standing female figure made 
in small numbers throughout the 
Aegean in the fifth millennium, with 
exaggerated buttocks and thighs, 
unusually broad shoulders, forearms 
carved on the body in a symmetrical, 
opposed arrangement. Typical are 
the elongated head and the small 
rudimentary feet separated by an 
inverted V shape space. Constructed 
from carefully balanced geometric 
volumes, this tiny figure achieves 
a forceful monumentality. Parallel 
examples were found at Egina.
C.A.
11
violin figure
Cyclades
Early Cycladic I period (3300–2700 BC)
Marble, H. 11 cm
Private Foundation, UK
Bibliography:
Thimme 1977, no. 48.

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109
12
violin figure
Cyclades
Early Cycladic I period (3300–2700 BC)
Marble, H. 23 cm, W. 10 cm
Private Collection, Paris 
Bibliography:
Getz-Gentle 2011, no. 9.
The simplified flat figures with long 
stalk head-neck and body shaped 
in a figure of eight, called 
violin
, 
were made in great numbers in the 
beginning of the early Bronze Age of 
the Cyclades. Violin figures are rarely 
decorated, but this is an exception: a V 
is incised at the neckline and another, 
inverted and larger, on the lower part 
indicates the sexual triangle, complete 
with a discreet slot. These abstract 
figures were introduced at the same 
time as a new, elaborated type called 
Plastiras, a svelte form that retains 
some of the realistic rendition of the 
Neolithic figures, but elongated.
C.A.
13
violin figure
Cyclades
Early Cycladic I period (3300–2700 BC)
Marble, H. 13.8 cm, W. 4.6 cm
Ligabue Collection, Venice
Bibliography:
Thimme 1977, pp. 226, 
431, no. 43.
A dynamic example, remarkable for 
the angular figure-of-eight body 
and elongated neck and waist. The 
head and neck are schematized and 
blended together in a single long 
stalk, similar to the stalk of a number 
or figures from the Beycesultan type: 
this is an indication of the relationship 
between the island and western 
Anatolia. The two sides are almost 
identical, but not quite, one side, 
probably the back, is slightly flatter 
than the other (the front?) with a faint 
swelling at the height of the hips and 
breasts. Other violin figures shown 
here are unambiguously sexed and 
oriented as to front and back, while 
comparable violin-shaped types from 
Beycesultan and Kusura in western 
Anatolia tend to have identical, 
un-oriented back and front. This 
difference may reside in different 
functions of the figure during their life 
before deposition.
C.A.

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111
110
14
pregnant reclining figure
Early Spedos type
Cyclades 
Early Cycladic II period (2700–2300 BC)
Marble, H. 19.6 cm, W. 6 cm
Private Collection, UK
Bibliography:
Getz-Gentle 2011, 
no. 27.
15
reclining figure
Early Spedos type
Cyclades
Early Cycladic II period (2700–2300 BC)
Marble, H. 19.9 cm
Private Collection, UK (courtesy 
RWAA)
Bibliography:
Thimme 1977, no. 144.
16
pregnant reclining figure
Late Spedos type
Cyclades
Early Cycladic II period (2700–2300 BC)
Marble, H. 20.3 cm
Private Collection, London
Bibliography:
Getz-Gentle 2011, no. 
41.
Like no. 14, this figure is 
unambiguously pregnant, but the 
belly is more compressed. The very 
elongated neck, the sloping shoulders, 
the concave contour of the thighs 
and ankles give this figure its inspired 
and dynamic balance. The straighter 
profile of the legs and the absence of 
perforation are characteristic of the 
Late Spedos style.
C.A.

---

113
112
17
pregnant reclining figure
Late Spedos type
Cyclades
Early Cycladic II period (2700–2300 BC)
Marble, H. 37.2 cm, W. 8.5 cm
Private Collection, Paris
18
reclining feMale figure
Late Spedos type
Cyclades
Early Cycladic II period (2700–2300 BC)
Marble, H. 47 cm
Private Collection, Germany
Bibliography:
Getz-Gentle 2011,
no. 42.
This figure is remarkable for the 
numerous painted marks, possibly 
indicative of tattoos: the cross on 
the chest is so far without parallel. 
More frequent are the paler marks 
on the face and arms: three vertical 
above the neck, three on the right 
cheek, possibly another series along 
the forehead, and pale traces on the 
forearm. The contrasted proportions 
of the large head and compressed 
torso, the shortened ankles and 
elongated feet are distinctively 
personal, encouraging Pat Gentle to 
reconstruct the work of an individual 
master, the Sutton Place Sculptor, 
around this masterpiece.
C.A.

---

115
114
19
Head of reclining feMale 
figure
Late Spedos type
Cyclades
Early Cycladic II period (2700–2300 BC)
Marble, H. 14.8 cm, W. 9 cm
Private Collection, Paris
Softly round cheeks, general contour 
in the shape of a capital U. Note the 
veining of the marble: the sculptor 
took advantage of the natural veining 
on the upper part of the head to 
suggest the presence of large, 
drooping eyes.
C.A.
20
Head of reclining feMale 
figure
Late Spedos type
Cyclades
Early Cycladic II period (2700–2300 BC)
Marble, H. 11.5 cm, W. 6.5 cm
Private Collection, Paris
A graceful face, the softly round cheeks, 
the for
ehead slightly flaring in a lyre 
shape and the gently curved profile 
contrast with the straight nose. Very 
faint traces of large, drooping eyes.
C.A.

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117
116
21
Harp player cycladeS
Thera
Early Cycladic II period (2700–2300 BC)
Marble, H. 16.8 cm, W. 5.5 cm
Badisches Landesmuseum, Karlsruhe, 
inv. 864
Bibliography:
Buchholz & 
Karageorghis 1973, no. 1210; Thimme 
1976, p. 492, no. 255; Thimme 1977, p. 
496, no. 255; Rehme 1997, p. 84, K 13, 
fig. 9 left. 
At the time Friedrich Maler acquired