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Statuette of a Striding Figure

A work made of copper.
CC0 Public Domain Designation

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  • A work made of copper.

Date:

3000-2800 BCE

Artist:

Mesopotamian or Iranian

About this artwork

Cast in solid copper and executed with a remarkable degree of sophistication, this statuette is thought to represent a supernatural being that served as an intermediary between the physical world and the spiritual realm. It depicts a muscular, bearded male wearing a headdress of goat horns and ears, a raptor skin over his shoulders, a cylindrical belt around his trim waist, and ankle boots with long, curved toes. His eyes are inlaid with bits of shell or stone; the now-missing pupils were probably made from a contrasting material. It is one of a pair of virtually identical figures (the other is in the collection of the Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York) that are unlike anything else that is known today.

Status

On View, Gallery 151

Department

Arts of the Ancient Mediterranean and Byzantium

Artist

Ancient Mesopotamian

Title

Statuette of a Striding Figure

Place

Iraq (Object made in)

Date  Dates are not always precisely known, but the Art Institute strives to present this information as consistently and legibly as possible. Dates may be represented as a range that spans decades, centuries, dynasties, or periods and may include qualifiers such as c. (circa) or BCE.

3000 BCE–2800 BCE

Medium

Copper

Dimensions

17.2 × 5.7 × 5.7 cm (6 3/4 × 2 1/4 × 2 1/4 in.)

Credit Line

Anonymous loan

Reference Number

611.2010

IIIF Manifest  The International Image Interoperability Framework (IIIF) represents a set of open standards that enables rich access to digital media from libraries, archives, museums, and other cultural institutions around the world.

Learn more.

https://api.artic.edu/api/v1/artworks/206785/manifest.json

Extended information about this artwork

Object information is a work in progress and may be updated as new research findings emerge. To help improve this record, please email . Information about image downloads and licensing is available here.

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