In Roman religion Minerva, the equivalent of the Greek goddess Athena, was an extremely important and powerful deity. Minerva was worshipped by the Romans as a goddess of medicine, strategy, science and wisdom. Bronze statuettes, such as this extremely fine example, would have been placed in temples and shrines as votive offerings. The connection with a religious and ceremonial context is reinforced by the presence of the patera, a broad and shallow dish or bowl, mostly produced in bronze, and often used as a sacred libation vessel. The iconography of Minerva holding a spear and a patera appears also in Roman imperial coinage.
Roman Bronze Statuette of Minerva
£ 625.00
A finely modelled Ancient Roman cast bronze statuette depicting the Roman goddess Minerva, portrayed wearing the aegis, a peplos and a crested Corinthian helmet. Her left hand is raised possibly to old a spear, now missing, while the right-hand rests on her body holding possibly a patera. The deity’s facial and anatomical features are rendered in an extremely naturalistic manner with much attention given towards the rendering of details.
Condition: Extremely fine, with details still clearly readable.
SOLD
| Weight | 77.2 g |
|---|---|
| Dimensions | W 2.9 x H 6.7 cm |
| Culture | |
| Metal | |
| Region | |
| Roman Mythology |
