Preview
Creation Date
2nd century CE
Culture
Roman
Medium
Bronze
Dimensions
2 1/4 × 1 3/16 × 10/16 in. (6 × 3.1 × 1.7 cm)
1.661 oz. (47.1 g); base: 0.557 oz. (15.8 g); horse: 1.108 oz. (31.4 g)
Credit Line
Gift of Sarah Blick, 2020
Accession Number
2020.457
Provenance
Purchased by Boris A. Blick (1922–2005) from an antique store in England.
Condition
Horse is separated from base. Chipped at the top of the horse's head, as if a piece has fallen off. Appears green due to the fact that it is bronze and old.
Description
This Roman statuette of a horse is made of bronze, now appearing green from verdigris formation over time. I have tentatively dated this piece to the 2nd century CE due its similarity to another statuette (cf. Medusa-art.com, Graeco-Roman Bronze Horse, https://medusa-art.com/graeco-roman-bronze-horse.html).
The horse stands upright, with its front-right leg lifted. The style of the statuette is angular, with curves of the body made to appear more square-like, and etchings into the figure appearing very linear. The horse itself is quite skinny. The statuette is made of two pieces: a figurine and a base. At one point these two pieces were likely attached to one another, as indicated by the rough edges of the horse’s hooves and where they stand on the base.
I performed an investigation of the function of this statuette by comparing it to similar objects. It is similar in size and medium to other animal figures such as those in Miniature Farmyard Group (Metropolitan Museum of Art, 09.221.20a–n) and thus could have served functions similar to them (votive offerings or toys). Additionally, the statuette shares its size, medium, and expression of gesture with Standing Jupiter (The Walters Art Museum, 54.749), a statuette from a lararium, or household Roman shrine to deities. The Horse Statuette is also similar in expression of gesture to the well-known 2nd-century Equestrian Statue of Marcus Aurelius, and could thus have been made to share its qualities of honor, victory, triumph, and conquest. The Horse Statuette could therefore have served as a votive offering, Roman toy, lararium piece, representation of a Roman god, and/or a symbol of triumph and conquest. However, no definitive statements about its function can be made at present.
Kat Ellis ('23) for ARHS 291 Greek and Roman Art, Spring 2023