CIRCA 2ND CENTURY A.D., A ROMAN COPY AFTER AN ARCHAIC GREEK ORIGINAL OF CIRCA 500 B.C. ATTRIBUTED TO ENDOIOS

Details

A Roman marble votive statuette of Artemis of Ephesus
Circa 2nd Century A.D., a Roman copy after an archaic Greek original of circa 500 B.C. attributed to Endoios
The goddess standing rigidly with arms bent forwards, wearing a long sheath-like dress falling in curved folds at the back with waistband, adorned with a necklet and broad pendant wreath, her front elaborately decorated in relief, the upper body bearing multiple rows of 'breasts' or scrota of sacrificed bulls, a leaping lion on each upper arm, the lower body with panels of rosettes, griffins, bulls and bees (the emblem of Ephesus), with after the antique restorations of the head wearing a mural (city) crown, a disc behind with relief griffins sitting on each shoulder, forearms, lower part of dress with flaring pleated hem and feet; mounted
14 3/8 in. (36.5 cm.) high

Lot Essay

This is a Roman copy of the famous fertility cult statue of Artemis which was commissioned (or reworked) by the sculptor Endoios to stand in the great Temple of Artemis at Ephesos which was built circa 550 B.C. Artemis is shown in the form of the Great Mother-goddess, an Eastern personification of fecundity. The lions connect her with Cybele who was widely worshipped in Asia Minor. For a full discussion of the type and inventory of known statues, cf. R. Fleischer, Artemis von Ephesos und verwandte Kultstatuen aus Anatolien und Syrien, Leiden, 1973. See, also, the 1st Century B.C. 'Great Artemis' and the 2nd Century A.D. 'Beautiful Artemis' statues in the Ephesus Museum (Inv. Nos. 712 and 718).

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