Draped Male Figure

This standing male figure, wrapped in a voluminous garment, leans on a pillar. Although generally referred to as Tanagra figurines after the most famous findspot, Tanagra (modern Schimatari) in Boeotia, Greece, statuettes of this type have been found at other sites in the ancient world, including Myrina and Smyrna (modern Izmir) in Asia Minor. The most common forms of the statuettes depict young women sitting, standing, or in the process of graceful movement, but there are also examples showing men or children. The statuettes were used as grave offerings, votives, decorative objects, and perhaps toys. The hair, clothing, skin, and jewelry of the pieces were originally painted, although most of the colors are presently faded.

Provenance

Provenance (from the French provenir, 'to come from/forth') is the chronology of the ownership, custody, or location of a historical object.

Joseph Brummer Gallery, Inc., Paris and New York, 1922, by purchase [Brummer inv. no. P399]; Henry Walters, Baltimore, by purchase, 1925; Walters Art Museum, by bequest, 1931