sculpture, figurine, figurin, skulptur

The Homeric Hymn to Demeter begins by describing how Hades was given consent by Zeus to marry Persephone, the daughter of Zeus and Demeter. According to the hymn, while Persephone was picking flowers in a meadow the ground suddenly opened and Hades, storming by in his chariot, carried her with him to the underworld. Demeter, however, did not know what had happened and spent nine days travelling the earth, searching with torches for her daughter. Finally, Helios and Hecate, who had witnessed the abduction, told her what had happened. Demeter became furious with Zeus and withdrew from Mount Olympus, wandering the earth in disguise.

In her anger and sorrow, Demeter then stopped the grain from growing across the earth. This threatened not only mortals but the gods too, who would not be given sacrifices if all mortals starved. When Zeus appealed to Demeter to return to Olympus and allow the grain to grow once more, she demanded the return of Persephone as her price. Hades agreed to this, but only after giving Persephone a pomegranate seed to eat. Because of this, Persephone would have to spend a third of each year in the underworld. However, Demeter was delighted over the return of her daughter and let the grain grow again.

This terracotta sculpture is likely a representation of Persephone, sporting wavy hair and being crowned with a polos. The sculpture, dated to the classical period, originates from the Grotta Caruso of Locri in Calabria, Italy. The sculpture belongs to the so-called “Italian exchange collection”, acquired from Museo Archeologico Nazionale di Reggio Calabria in 1956.