Indus Valley Style Terracotta Idol Group

Mixed group of figures with anatomical details. 255 grams, 11-13 cm

Very fine condition.

From the private collection of John Meredith, acquired since the 1990s; thence by descent.

Modelled in the round as a bust of a youthful female, possibly Aphrodite with her hair bound by a narrow filet tied at the nape of the neck and the tails retained by a flat ribbon at the rear; the face perhaps modelled on the statue 'Aphrodite of Knidos' by Praxiteles; socket to crown of the head for attachment of a nimbus (now absent); mounted on a socle base. 12.6 kg, 40.5 cm



Acquired on the Los Angeles art market. Private collection, England. This lot has been checked against the Interpol Database of stolen works of art and is accompanied by search certificate number no.13095-249678.

This magnificent head of a woman with an elaborate hairstyle is in perfect harmony with the artistic works of several neo-classical sculptors of 18th century, yet subtly different from it in stylistic terms, like Giovanni Marchiori, and to the so-called stone Venus or Flora in the Museo Civico di Treviso.

Discoid bezel with high-relief gorgoneion motif modelled in the half-round. 7.49 grams, 23.58 mm overall, 20.55 mm internal diameter (approximate size British O 1/2, USA 7 1/4, Europe 15.61, Japan 15)



Ex German art market, 2000s. Acquired from an EU collector living in London. From the collection of a Surrey, UK, gentleman.