Solid Etruscan Bronze Handle of a Cista in the Form of the Divine Twins Tinas Cliniar (“Castor and Pollux”)

Culture: Etruscan

Period: Late 5th century B.C.

Material: Bronze

Dimensions: 8.7 cm x 11.1 cm

Price: Reserved

Ref: 4241

Provenance: From an old French collection; according to the Tajan catalogue, "Nice, 19th century." Auctioned at Tajan in Paris, on 23 April 2007, lot 245. There acquired by Royal-Athena Galleries, New York, and published in the catalogue „Art of the Ancient World“, Vol. 19, 2008, p. 25, no. 48. Acquired in 2010 by Christian Levett for the Mougins Museum of Classical Art. Exhibited there from June 2011 to August 2023 under inventory number MM 2010 345. With a French antiquities passport.

Condition: Intact

Description: Sculptural bronze statuette of the divine twins Tinas Cliniar, the sons of the supreme god in Etruscan religion, corresponding to the later Roman Dioscuri, Castor and Pollux. The youthful figures are unclothed, standing side by side with one arm draped over each other's shoulder. Their free arms are resting on their hips. Their short hair frames the faces in distinct locks, while the almond-shaped eyes and prominent noses still reflect the Archaic tradition. The stance, with one weight-bearing and one relaxed leg, together with the well-proportioned modelling of the bodies, clearly demonstrates the emerging Classical conception of the human form. The figures are soldered onto a heavy bronze plate that was originally attached to the lid of a cista. These cylindrical bronze containers were used in Etruria to store toiletries. On the lid, the divine twins served as the handle by which the cover could be lifted from the cista. See for the type of two figures placing an arm over each other's shoulder, the cista handle in the British Museum with the registration number 1873,0820.101 and that in The Walters Art Museum with the accession number 54.135. Probably from Praeneste. On the underside, the collection number MM 2010 345 is written in white pencil. It refers to the Musée Mougins in southern France, where the statuette was exhibited from June 2011 to August 2023. Mounted.