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Caricature

Greek
Classical period
late 5th or early 4th Century B.C.
Place of Manufacture: Greece, Boiotia ?

Medium/Technique Terracotta
Dimensions Height: 25.2 cm (9 15/16 in.)
Credit Line Museum purchase with funds donated by contribution
Accession Number01.7761
ClassificationsSculpture

DescriptionParody of Herakles Kitharodes, the hero as kithara-player and the murder of his music teacher Linus. The parody of this myth, which is evident in the grotesque and exaggerated features of the figurine relates to the carnival-like character of the festival of the Kabirion, where many such figurines were found.


Flesh pink, lips red. About the base are two bands of red.
ProvenanceBy 1901: with E. P. Warren (according to Warren's records: Bought in Paris, said from Thebes.); purchased by MFA from E. P. Warren, December 1901