Zoomorphic Sculpture With A Fertility Goddess, 2000 BCE - 1500 BCE
Terracotta
9.5 x 10.2 cm
3 3/4 x 4 in
3 3/4 x 4 in
PF.2159
Further images
There is a hypnotic, mysterious quality about this clay votive. The head of the fertility goddess Astarte rises from the back of a horse with one body and tail, but...
There is a hypnotic, mysterious quality about this clay votive. The head of the fertility goddess Astarte rises from the back of a horse with one body and tail, but two heads. This seems an image endowed with magical powers. What does it mean? Is it a reflection of some forgotten myth? A record of some freak double-headed birth, considered an omen from the heavens? A whimsical abstraction on the part of the artist? The answers to such questions are lost in the mists of time. What remains is a sculpture of enduring fascination and power.
Literature
V7