Relief Fragments Depicting a Seated Woman and a Griffin
Date:
Early 1st century
Artist:
Roman
About this artwork
Inside some Roman houses, baths, and tombs, multiple layers of slow-drying stucco were applied to rough stone walls and divided into panels that were then painted. While the surface was still damp, fresh stucco was applied and modeled into decorative motifs and figures, which were left white to contrast with the painted background. This relief panel and its partner (1922.4429) likely came from the same building. In this panel, a seated woman extends her right arm toward a slender griffin, a mythological winged beast with the body of a cat and the head of a bird.
Relief Fragments Depicting a Seated Woman and a Griffin
Place
Italy (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.
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Art Institute of Chicago, “Accessions and Loans,” Bulletin of the Art Institute of Chicago 16, 7 (December, 1922), p. 99.
Marguerite B. Williams, “Stucco Reliefs from Nero’s Palace,” Bulletin of the Art Institute of Chicago 17, 2 (February, 1923), pp. 15–16.
Karen B. Alexander and Mary Greuel. Private Taste in Ancient Rome: Selections from Chicago Collections. Exh. cat. (Chicago: Art Institute of Chicago, 1990), cat. 30.
Sandra E. Knudsen, “Cats. 157-158 Two Groups of Relief Fragments: Curatorial Entry,” in Roman Art at the Art Institute of Chicago (Art Institute of Chicago, 2016).
Rachel C. Sabino, “Cats. 157-158 Two Groups of Relief Fragments: Technical Report,” in Roman Art at the Art Institute of Chicago (Art Institute of Chicago, 2016).
Rockford College, 1949–63, no cat.
Art Institute of Chicago, Of Gods and Glamour: The Mary and Michael Jaharis Galleries of Greek, Roman, and Byzantine Art, Gallery 152, November 11, 2012 - present.
George P. A. Healy (1813-1894), Chicago, acquired in Rome between 1868 and 1873; by descent to his daughter Editch Healy Hill (1849-1936); given to the Art Institute of Chicago, 1922.
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