Tanagra Figurine

Object 247 is an example of a Tanagra type figurine, named after the cemeteries in the Tanagra region of Greece in which figures like these were discovered in the 19th century. Figures such as this are representations of a long history of statuette production in and around Tanagra, which underwent several stages of cultural significance and symbolism. Dating back to the Hellenistic period, these figurines are believed to have been largely made and used as votive offerings, though by the end of the 4th century BCE had ceased to be objects of reverence and were manufactured simply as representations of women and girls in everyday life.

While object 247 is probably not ancient, it reflects the form and fashion of Tanagra figurines found in ancient sites in Greece. This object is a standing woman draped in intricately folded garments, supported by a rectangular base. It is an example of the fine details that are emblematic of Tanagra figurines, particularly the representation of intricate folding, draping, and stretching of garments. As was typical, this figurine was constructed out of terracotta, a dark red clay and coated in a white slip.

-Jinette Jimenez ‘21, JIAAW Records and Collections Assistant

Learn more about Tanagra figurines and see other examples:

Tanagra | Fitzwilliam Museum
The name ‘Tanagra’ has come to be synonymous with one of the commonest types of Greek terracotta, the elegant draped, female figures produced in vast quantities throughout the ancient Greek world between about 300 and 50 BC. But Tanagra is also the name of the ancient city where many of them were made and found.

Tanagra figurine | Museum of Cycladic Art
The Museum of Cycladic Art is dedicated to the study and promotion of ancient cultures of the Aegean and Cyprus, with special emphasis on Cycladic Art of the 3rd millennium BC

Terracotta draped woman | Greek, Boeotian | Hellenistic | The Met
Richter, Gisela M. A. 1908. “Greek and Roman Terracottas in The Metropolitan Museum of Art.” The International Studio, 36: pp. 69-70, fig. 9. Uhlenbrock, Jaimee. 1990. The Coroplast’s Art: Greek Terracottas of the Hellenistic World p. 50, fig. 37, New Rochelle, N.Y.: College Art Gallery, State University College New Paltz.