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Greek Woman Figurine

Collection Type

  • Decorative arts

Date

1852

GUSN

GUSN-33806

Description

After the sculpture by Hiram Powers (1805-1873)

Details

Descriptive Terms

figurines
parian (porcelain)
Figurine

Label

"Cherished Possessions": Hiram Powers found his greatest success with his life-size sculpture, the Greek Slave, of which he made six copies. The figure represented victims of the Greek War of Independence, when Greek women were enslaved and sold in Turkish markets. The figure, as Powers saw her, although nude, rose above her captivity with an inner strength and calm brought on by her belief in God. For a culture notoriously prudish, this was a daring image, but it became so popular that thousands of copies were sold in bronze and plaster and, like this one, in Parian, a type of lightly glazed porcelain that imitated marble.

Maker

Copeland, W. T. , 1847-1870

Credit Line

Gift of William Sumner Appleton

Accession Number

1931.70

Places

County of Staffordshire (England, United Kingdom) [county]

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