Marble head of a woman wearing diadem and veil

Marble head of a woman wearing diadem and veil

An item at Metropolitan Museum of Art

The presence of both a diadem and a himation (cloak) drawn over the hair suggests that this small exquisitely carved head represents a female divinity such as Hera or Demeter. It may have belonged to a figure that was part of a high relief or the pediment of a small building. The strong curve of the neck probably indicates that the goddess was shown as though moving to her left.

Greek and Roman Art

An exhibit at Metropolitan Museum of Art

Marble head of a woman wearing diadem and veilMarble head of a woman wearing diadem and veilMarble head of a woman wearing diadem and veilMarble head of a woman wearing diadem and veilMarble head of a woman wearing diadem and veil

The Museum's collection of Greek and Roman art comprises more than thirty thousand works ranging in date from the Neolithic period (ca. 4500 B.C.) to the time of the Roman emperor Constantine's conversion to Christianity in A.D. 312. It includes the art of many cultures and is among the most comprehensive in North America. The geographic regions represented are Greece and Italy, but not as delimited by modern political frontiers: Greek colonies were established around the Mediterranean basin and on the shores of the Black Sea, and Cyprus became increasingly Hellenized. For Roman art, the geographical limits coincide with the expansion of the Roman Empire. The department also exhibits the art of prehistoric Greece (Helladic, Cycladic, and Minoan) and pre-Roman art of Italic peoples, notably the Etruscans.