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Crouching Women Playing Knucklebones
(Ancient Greece )
The maidens are playing an ancient form of jacks, known as "astragalus" (knucklebones), a game in which five small animal bones were tossed into the air and caught on the back of the hand. The grouping of separate statuettes is almost unknown before Hellenistic times, when artists became fascinated both by the interaction of figures and by the challenge of representing complex poses, such as this crouching stance.
Provenance
Provenance (from the French provenir, 'to come from/forth') is the chronology of the ownership, custody, or location of a historical object. Learn more about provenance at the Walters.
Hirsch Sale, June 30-July 2, 1921, no. 132; Arthur Sambon, Paris (?), 1924; Henry Walters, Baltimore, 1924, by purchase; Walters Art Museum, 1931, by bequest.
Geographies
Greece (Place of Origin)
Measurements
H: 5 11/16 x W: 4 3/16 x D: 2 5/8 in. (14.5 x 10.7 x 6.7 cm)
Credit Line
Acquired by Henry Walters, 1924
Location in Museum
Accession Number
In libraries, galleries, museums, and archives, an accession number is a unique identifier assigned to each object in the collection.
In libraries, galleries, museums, and archives, an accession number is a unique identifier assigned to each object in the collection.
VO.19 (48.303, 48.304)