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Source Description
Together with a similar piece now at The Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York (inv. 10.134.5), this statuette may originally have been the foot of a large candlestick or of another similar object. Creatures with a human head and a bird's body (called sirens or harpies) were first described by the ancient Greek poet Homer as luring sailors with their enchanting singing and causing shipwrecks. For medieval Christians, they symbolized temptation. Here, the serpent-shaped tail further emphasizes the siren's evil nature. The figurine's position at the base of a large object would have signified the overcoming of sin.
Scholar Source Context
Document identity
localId
21421
label
Sphinx
core
obj
dtoType
object
citationUrl
pageCount
1
Source metadata
id
21421
sourceUrl
contentType
object
stage
normalized
title
Sphinx
description
Together with a similar piece now at The Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York (inv. 10.134.5), this statuette may originally have been the foot of a large candlestick or of another similar object. Creatures with a human head and a bird's body (called sirens or harpies) were first described by the ancient Greek poet Homer as luring sailors with their enchanting singing and causing shipwrecks. For medieval Christians, they symbolized temptation. Here, the serpent-shaped tail further emphasizes the siren's evil nature. The figurine's position at the base of a large object would have signified the overcoming of sin.
provenance
Henri de Lannoy, Paris, by purchase; Henri Daguerre, Paris [date of acquisistion unknown], by purchase; Henry Walters, Baltimore, 1909, by purchase; Walters Art Museum, 1931, by bequest.
date
ca. 1200 (Medieval)
citationUrl
rightsUri
CC0
language
en
genreSpecific
Metal
candlesticks
imageCount
1
pageCount
1
source
import
dimensions
units
cm
width
12.2
height
11.5
dimensionsRaw
4 13/16 x 4 1/2 in. (12.2 x 11.5 cm)
Source extras
cul
French
style
Gothic
med
bronze
creator_ids
6505
collection_ids
MED
exhibition_ids
1957
246
Single page context
seq
1
pageIndex
0
type
photo
mediaId
c0b72acfa3a06f5f