AN ANATOLIAN STONE MOTHER GODDESS NEOLITHIC PERIOD, CIRCA 6TH MILLENNIUM B.C.
Provenance: Important Poland Collection, up to 2015. By decent by the previous family collection, Poland-Greece. Important Greek Collection of R. W. B. Pardiak, 1960`s to 2000. By decent to the above owner, acquired prior to 1960`s. Private Greek Collection, by decent from the owners grandfather 1930s Property of a Dutch Based Collector Exhibited: Art Foundation, Amersfoort, The Netherlands. Stone Structure: The stone structure and stone surface represents small ancient cracks and pitting, with deep hard sediment deposits and traces of ancient corrosion in the deeper layers of the stone structure. Entirely preserved, no restorations or repairs. The surface slightly cleaned, but still into the deep layers surface weathering. Catalogue notes:  Important Neolithic Marble Steatopygous Female Figure, dating back to 5000-3000 B.C. The figure represents a rare type known as Steatopygous, characterized by particularly big head, thick neck, full breasts, arms folded on the breasts, legs and buttocks, and is undoubtedly indicative of fertility. This statuette is exceptional with it`s relatively big size, skillfully designed composition, harmonious proportions, and the beauty of the highly polished stone. The surface is soft, with pitting in stone surface and traces of original polishing and tooling. The entire composition represents a rare type known as Steatopygous, where the enormous buttocks and thighs establish the base for the torso, with surmounting head which follows the median axis almost exactly. The represented figure is lying on the back or ground in burial context. This figure can stand alone, without support. The figure is impressive in contrasting corpulent forms and delicate breasts, feet, hands and vulva; the latter are arranged symmetrically. Both the sophistication and distinctive level of abstraction define the present artwork. It is organized as a combination of rounded, well-articulated volumes, and the lack of details is a typical characteristic. The hair and the facial features are not indicated here, although they could be represented in other contemporary figurines. The reason for omitting is probably the artist’s idea to keep the image without gender, age, and other individual attributes. The "idol" has considerable tactile appeal and was most likely designed to be handled. One does not exclude the opportunity that such figures were manipulated in some way during certain public or private rituals and ceremonies. Similar statuettes, both of stone and clay, were discovered both in shrines and houses. The Neolithic stone statues and statuettes from Greece, very close in composition and shape to the present sculpture, have completely flat backs and it has been suggested that they were meant to stand against the wall. Statuettes of sitting, standing or reclining figures with overexaggerated, voluminous shapes (especially of buttocks, breasts, and mid-sections) are characteristic for the Neolithic culture and found in many areas of the Near East, the greater Mediterranean area, and also in Eastern, Central and Western Europe. They vary greatly in style (with a more naturalistic or schematic approach in modeling the body, head and facial features) and material: commonly executed in baked clay, they can also be of white or grey marble, semi-translucent alabaster, or colored stones such as dark green steatite, greenish grey schist, or dark brown and green or green serpentine. The use of white- grey marble stone is more typical for the figurines found in the mainland of Greece. It is generally assumed that the Steatopygous form relates such figures to the fertility goddess, the Great Mother, whose cult was primary in the religion of early human civilization. She was considered the Mistress of life and death for human, animal, and vegetation. This present statuette slightly differs from the known type, because instead of the ample mid-section that shows the sign of pregnancy, the waist is thin and the breasts are small, which may suggest that the person is young, healthy, and sexually attractive. This brings the idea that the concept of this image also included the implications of the goddess of beauty.
Height: 9.5cm