| Descriptive Attribute | Value(s) |
|---|---|
| Type | Divine Images: Cypriot Pan |
| Title | Pan Statuette |
| Excavation Unit | 10 |
| Stratigraphic Unit | 1099.14 |
| Context | Found on the surface of the hard-packed floor layer associated with the Hellenistic-Roman phase of the sanctuary (EU 10/SU 1099.140). |
| Current Location | Larnaka District Archaeological Museum, Cyprus |
| Material | Limestone |
| Height (cm) | 42.2 |
| Width (cm) | 17.5 |
| Date | 310 – 30 BCE |
| Thickness (cm) | 8.0 |
| Weight (kg) | 5.7 |
| Description | Cypriot Pan statuette preserved from neck to base with head missing; three fragments of the stomach are joined to the torso. The surface is chipped around navel, under proper left side of chest, and on proper left shin. Pan holds a lagobolon (hunting and shepherding staff) and a syrinx (panpipes) against his body while standing confidently on a sloped plinth as a stocky figure with a prominent abdomen, heavy legs, and a brawny musculature. Although his left leg is bent and slightly advanced, the stance does not affect the rest of the body, that is to say the hips and shoulders are level. He is nude except for a goatskin cape pulled symmetrically over the shoulders and upper arms and tied in a Herakles knot at the chest. Goat hooves hang as drawstrings from the knot, which radiates finely modeled folds that create tension in the drapery and reveal the underlying musculature. A curl from Pan’s wig-like coiffure spirals off the right side of his thick neck and rests on a sloping shoulder; the curl faces the front but continues around the back side as a vertically ribbed fringe of hair. The back of the statuette is otherwise worked flat. The lagobolon, rendered as a knobby club, is held down at his right side with the hooked end turned back and resting on the plinth. Pan grips the syrinx sideways with his left hand so that the pipe ends face out (one pipe is preserved at the front but all four remain at the back); vertical bands on either side of his hand strap the pipes. The hands and feet are modeled with nails rendered. The genitalia hang heavy between fleshy thighs. Traces of paint are not preserved and black splotches from natural discoloration appear passim. |
| Commentary | AAP-AM-1076 is the best-preserved example to date of a type of Cypriot Pan that has so far been unique to the Malloura sanctuary (Category 5, see Cofer 2011: 168–71, fig. 12.6). With this type, the lagobolon and syrinx distinctly frame the lower body: the lagobolon is held with the hook down and reflexed, while the syrinx is held sideways with the pipes horizontal. Because the syrinx is not in playing position and the hook of the lagobolon is hidden from the front, Pan’s musical, hunting, and shepherding prowess is implied or anticipated rather than displayed in action. The form and proportions of the figure also distinguish the type and are nearly the opposite of AAP-AM-624+697: the form is heavy; the figure slouches; the stance is square; the torso is longer than the legs and the thighs are longer than the shins. Also noticeable is an intentional disproportion through the use of foreshortening (the hand is unnaturally large compared to the shortness of the entire left arm) and other illusionistic effects (the left arm appears bent even though it is carved straight). These illusionistic techniques are pleasing and serve practical ends: the cape functions as a relief background for the figure and the sloped plinth adds depth and mimics a real statue base. Other examples uncovered at Athienou-Malloura can be assigned to this type, most notably a fragmentary statuette that compares so closely in terms of scale, iconography, style, and workmanship that it may have been carved by the same sculptor. The hairstyle, of which little is preserved, finds its closest parallel in a well-modeled Pan head from Larnaka now in the Cyprus Museum (Flourentzos 1989: cat. no. 38, pl. XXVIII). In terms of date, the foreshortening, illusionism, and general stylistic details situate AAP-AM-1076 broadly within the Hellenistic period (310–30 BCE). This date is consistent with the statuette’s archaeological context; AAP-AM-1076 was found resting directly on the hard-packed floor layer associated with the Hellenistic–Roman phase of the sanctuary. Interestingly, it was found with a much older CA votary that must have still been on display (an heirloom?) or otherwise available, having missed appropriation for fill material when the sanctuary was reorganized in the early Hellenistic period (Counts 1998: 82, fig. 8). |
| Bibliography | Cofer 2001: 144-45, 156-57, 210-12, pl. IX; 2011: 168-71, fig. 12.6; Toumazou and Counts 2011: 74, fig. 6.4 |
| Sketchfab Media URL |
Alternate link to 3D Model: https://sketchfab.com/3d-models/aap-am-1076-080a0309bfed48c99cc5417a7d7d3de8
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| Descriptive Attribute | Value(s) |
|---|---|
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Consists of
Vocabulary: CIDOC Conceptual Reference Model (CRM) |
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Has type
Vocabulary: CIDOC Conceptual Reference Model (CRM) |
sculpture (visual works)
Vocabulary: Getty Art and Architecture Thesaurus Open Context References: sculpture (visual works) |
Suggested Citation
Derek Counts, Erin Averett, Kevin Garstki. (2020) "AAP-AM-1076 from Europe/Cyprus/Athienou-Malloura". In Visualizing Votive Practice: Exploring Limestone and Terracotta Sculpture from Athienou-Malloura through 3D Models. Derek B. Counts, Erin Walcek Averett, Kevin Garstki, Michael Toumazou (Ed). Released: 2020-07-28. Open Context. <https://opencontext.org/subjects/29eded84-694f-43ee-92cd-3df6c305e1aa> ARK (Archive): https://n2t.net/ark:/28722/k2h99gk06
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