Greek, Hellenistic (Alexandria), ca. 2nd century B.C.

Bronze

H: 10.5 cm

Serial: 2459

Provenance: Sotheby's New York, June 8th 1994, lot 169.

 The dancer, his head thrown back, almost appears to be in a trance, as if he is concentrating fiercely on the moves that he will execute. He wears a large necklace and maybe a pointed cap with a raised border. He is extremely thin, his back presents a large pointed protrusion between the shoulder blades and his chest is abnormally large: like n. 1, this dancer is sick or even infirm (suffering from rickets?).
In their remarks on hunchbacks in ancient art, MD Grmek and D. Gourevitch have noted that their frequency is well above average compared to the number of people who actually afflicted with this deformity. The two authors explain this phenomenon through the apotropaic significance and good luck that were associated with sufferers of such handicaps.