Man or Actor Riding a Donkey
1st century BCE-1st century CE
Description
Almost complete figurine, repaired, with extensive wear on the surface. A man, at least partly nude, riding a donkey side saddled. Bald with pointed, egg-shaped head and protruding ears (right ear missing); likely an actor or slave type. Detailed face with small, sunken eyes, a large, pointy nose, slightly parted lips, small, rounded chin, and a thick neck. Body with odd proportions; small and narrow at the upper chest, but with larger, bulging belly. Something sits in between the spread legs, likely a prosthetic phallus. The man leans with his left arm upon the neck of the donkey. His right arm falls to his side and holds something bulbous, a bag perhaps. The donkey stands in profile, facing right. A long, horse-like face with long ears that arch up and back. It stands on a tall, uneven base. Covered in green lead-glaze. Hollow with open bottom. Mold-made in a single bivalve mold. Proper right side of the donkey intended as main view. Back is minimally modeled, with some indication of form down to the donkey’s trunk; plain below.
Dimensions
15 × 8.4 cm (5 7/8 × 3 5/16 in.)
Provenance
Dr. Harris Kennedy, Milton, MA (by 1932), gift; to the William Hayes Fogg Art Museum, 1932.
Related Artworks
View MoreTerracotta
Terracotta
RomanWhite jasperware body with green glaze on front, figures in white relief
18th centuryBritishBronze
19th centuryAmericanTerracotta
Bronze, with brown patina
19th centuryFrenchTerracotta
18th centuryItalian
Bronze
20th centuryBritishGray limestone
16th-17th centuryChineseHard-paste porcelain decorated with polychrome enamels
18th centuryGermanterracotta
5th century BCETerracotta
Greek