Sculptured pedimental block from Building F at Xanthos
- Title:
- Sculptured pedimental block from Building F at Xanthos
- Collection:
- Cornell Cast Collection
- Creator:
- Unknown
- Photographer:
- Alexandridis, Annetta
- Date:
- ca. 1890-1900
ca. 460-450 BCE
2008 (image)
- Site:
- Xanthos, Turkey (original)
- Location:
- Warehouse
Xanthos, Turkey (original) - ID Number:
- CCC_0089
- Accession Number:
- Sage no. 77
23 (carved in top and bottom)
185 (old sticker in front)
89 - File Name:
- CCC_0089.tif
- Original Measurements:
- 83 (H) x 105 (W) cm
- Culture:
- Lycian
- Style/Period:
- Greek Classical
- Work Type:
- casts (sculpture)
- Materials/Techniques:
- plaster cast (sculpture)
limestone sculpture in relief (original) - Subject:
- Xanthos (Ancient city)
Sirens (Mythology) - Image View Type:
- overall
- Image View Description:
- from front
- Measurement:
- 100 (maximum) x 84 (maximum) x 3.5-6 (centimeters, height x width x diameter)
- Description:
- This is a cast of a relief-decorated irregular pentagon limestone slab from Xanthos, the pediment of a building identified as Building F, perhaps a cult building or a tomb. Here, two seated male figures flank a central ionic column at the top of which stands a Siren. The figure on the viewer's left is beardless and wears a long-sleeved chiton. He rests his left hand on a staff and holds his right hand flat above his lap. He faces, in almost mirror-mage, the figure on the right, who has a long, pointed beard and also wears a long-sleeved chiton. That figure rests his right hand on a staff and holds his left hand flat above his lap. The back of his head is missing in the original, as is much of his seat. Between them stands a fluted column topped with an ionic capital that stands only slightly taller than the tops of the men's heads. A diminutive Siren stands atop the capital facing front. She has wings spread to the sides, human arms held out to the sides, a bird-shaped body with a woman's chest and breasts, a fanned tail, and bird legs. Her head is missing in the original. The function of Building F is unknown, but it has been proposed that the building was used for cult instead of funerary purposes. This block was discovered reused in a late antique wall on the acropolis at Xanthos.
- Notes:
- Items in the Cornell Cast Collection are meant for inventory and reference purposes. Metadata may not be complete in all cases.
no. 1848,1020.23 - Bibliography:
- Ian Jenkins, Greek Architecture and its Sculpture (Cambridge, MA: Harvard University Press, 2006), 168-174
John Boardman, Greek Sculpture: The Late Classical Period and Sculpture in Colonies and Overseas (London: Thames and Hudson, 1995), 188-190
Antony G. Keen, "The dynastic tombs of Xanthos--who was buried where?" Anatolian Studies 42 (1992), 53-63 - Repository:
- Cornell University (current)
London, British Museum (original) - Collecting Program:
- Cornell Collections of Antiquities
- Format:
- Image
- Rights:
- The images in the Cornell Collection of Antiquities: Casts are protected by copyright, and the copyright holders are their creators, generally Cornell University Library, Annetta Alexandridis, and Verity Platt. This collection of plaster casts owned by Cornell University was photographed by Cornell University Library, Alexandridis, Platt, and Andreya L. Mihaloew from 2010-2015, with funding from a Digital Collections in Arts and Sciences Grant to Annetta Alexandridis. Cornell is providing access to the materials for research and personal use. The written permission of any copyright and other rights holders is required for distribution, reproduction, or other use that extends beyond what is authorized by fair use and other statutory exemptions. Responsibility for making an independent legal assessment of an item and securing any necessary permissions ultimately rests with persons desiring to use the item. Please contact Annetta Alexandridis and Verity Platt for more information about this collection, or to request permission to use these images.