Female Votive Figure

Standing frontally, this small, well-preserved votive figurine holds her arms out at waist level with her palms up. Her short hair, parted in the middle, is ornamented with a decorated band. The figure wears a chiton below a himation, both of which are decorated by a series of circular punch marks—around the neck of the chiton, and along the border of the fold of the himation. Diagonal and shallow folds indicate the flow of her cloak as it drapes over her bent left arm. Both hands are extended outward, palms upturned, although the right hand is missing most of its fingers. The facial features, gestures, and costume of this figure closely resemble those of a votive offering from Ghiaccio Forte, Italy (1). Votive figurines of this type are relatively common in Etruria; most often we see them with similar open-handed gestures (2), although many hold a patera in their right hands. The example from Ghiaccio Forte grasps a knob (pomo). What our female offerer would have held in her mangled right hand remains a mystery.