SculptureGreek8th-7th century BCE

Man Leading a Ram by the Horn

late 8th-early 7th century BCE

Description

A small sturdy ram appears to resist the efforts of a determined nude man standing beside him to lead or guide him forward, perhaps to sacrifice. The man's expressive, large hands convey his effort to make the animal move. Groups such as this are very rare in Geometric bronze sculpture and foreshadow the production of larger and more complicated sculptural compositions in bronze and stone during centuries to come. The presence of an iron pin piercing the plinth and extending into the ram's underside suggests that this charming group may originally have been attached to the top of a staff or sceptre. While the identity of the man remains uncertain, it is tempting to think of him as Hermes, the messenger god who sponsored trade and cared for flocks. David Gordon Mitten

Classification

Sculpture

Technique

Cast, lost-wax process

Medium

Bronze, traces of iron rod in base

Culture

Greek

Period

Geometric period to Orientalizing

Century

8th-7th century BCE

Division

Asian and Mediterranean Art

Department

Department of Ancient and Byzantine Art & Numismatics

Dimensions

overall: 6.6 x 5.4 x 3.4 cm (2 5/8 x 2 1/8 x 1 5/16 in.) base: 3 x 3 cm (1 3/16 x 1 3/16 in.)

Provenance

Robert E. Hecht, Jr., Paris, France, (by 1965), sold; [through Sotheby's, London, November 27, 1967, lot 180;] to Herbert A. Cahn, Basel, Switzerland, (1967-1969), sold; [through Münzen und Medaillen, Basel, November 1969], sold; to Fogg Art Museum, 1970.