Iberian Peninsula to the indus

parts of the 
bodies were indicated by painting. 
In the stylistic classification of the 
Cycladic idols, the Karlsruhe harp 
player belongs to the end of the so-
called Pelos-Grotta-phase, middle of 
the third millennium BC. All known 
harp player figurines sit on a low stool 
or “throne” (stool with backrest) – in 
this case a simple stool – with the 
same kind of instrument: a closed 
triangle with a rectangular resonance 
body which lies on the players’ thigh. 
It has already been established that 
this kind of instrument comes from 
the Middle East (see essay in this 
catalogue by
Bo Lawergren 
p. 00-00
). 
This circumstance is not surprising, 
since it is known that the inhabitants of 
the Cyclades were in close contact and 
commercial exchange with the people 
from the coast of the Middle East. The 
closed form of the instrument creates 
exact tones, delicate sounds and a rich 
volume. It needs professional players 
to play this instrument and to achieve 
satisfactory results. The qualitative 
representation of the human in a 
figurine made of the best material of 
that time – marble – whose production 
requires very elaborate skills allows 
us to assume that the player enjoyed 
high social prestige.
The question arises: who is portrayed 
in this figure? A human, a divine 
person or a god himself? While the 
interpretation of the folded arm 
figures has been widely discussed with 
the result that they have been used 
for repeated and different use as an 
intermediary between the human and 
the divine sphere – this identification 
is based on the different painted 
decoration of the figurines – we do not 
have many interpretation possibilities 
concerning the harp players. The 
association with the banquet relies 
on the fact that there are other sitting 
figurines that represent drinking 
people. But is the banquet based in 
real life, in the hereafter or in a divine 
sphere? Unless we have no clearer 
evidence of the use of the figurines, 
we are not able to give a satisfactory 
answer. However, we know for sure: 
people of the third millennium BC 
loved good music. 
H.K.
References: 
Horst 2011; Mikrakis 2011.

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119
118
22
reclining feMale figure
Dokathismata type 
Cyclades
Early Cycladic II period (2700–2300 BC)
Marble, H. 15.3 cm 
Private Collection London
Bibliography:
Thimme 1977, no. 232; 
Getz-Gentle 2011, no. 51.
This is a boldly stylized figure of the 
Dokathismata group, characterized 
by a profile straighter than in the Late 
Spedos. Front and rear tend to be 
flatter, with abrupt bulges for breasts, 
belly and buttocks, erupting from 
the main surface. In an attempt to 
free himself from inert material, the 
sculptor challenged the difficulty of 
the marble by cutting out audacious 
openings between the upper arms and 
torso, and between the legs almost 
up to the groin. These openings, in 
a rather thin depth, certainly account 
for the breaks. The piece probably 
comes from what is called the “Keros 
hoard”. This vast assemblage was 
looted repeatedly from an enigmatic 
site, Kavos, on the small island of 
Keros, which lies between Naxos and 
Amorgos, in the heart of the Cyclades.
C.A.
23
reclining feMale figure
Dokathismata type
Cyclades
Early Cycladic II period (2700–2300 BC)
Marble, H. 7 cm, W. 5.1 cm
Ligabue Collection, Venice