Since the dawn of time, man has offered votives to win the benign favor of his gods. Sometimes these were perishable gifts of food, or wine, or livestock. At other times they were figures of stone, metal or clay--votives of a more enduring nature. The temples of antiquity were filled to overflowing with lively depictions of deities, royalty, ordinary folk and animals, all meant to capture the attention of the silent heavens. As symbols of human aspiration, tokens of dreams whose outcome has long been forgotten, such objects place us directly in touch with the living past.