Mycenaean, 13th century B.C.

Painted Terracotta

H: 10 cm

Serial: 13759

Provenance: Ex- British private collection, acquired in the 19th century

Published: Phoenix Ancient Art 2005- 1, Geneva-New York, 2005, no. 3

This is a beautiful example of a “Psi” type idol. It was decorated by hand in brownish red paint. The statuette is an abstract representation of a woman, dressed in a long conical skirt, with her arms uplifted and a flat head, made by pinching the clay between two fingers. Figures of this type first appear in Mycenaean tombs and sanctuaries beginning in the 15th century B.C.

They are named for the Greek letter which their forms recall: there are “Psi” figurines (of which our figurine is an example), “Phi” figurines, and “Tau” figurines. According to a number of archaeologists, these representations represent a Neolithic mother goddess, and, therefore, should be included in the sphere of cult and ritual objects dedicated to fertility and fecundity.