South Arabian Limestone Seated Female Statuette

Culture: South Arabia/Sabaean

Period: 3rd-2nd century B.C.

Material: Limestone

Dimensions: 19.5 cm high

Price: 8 000 Euro

Ref: 6687

Provenance: Belgian private collection of Anne and Christophe Vaes, acquired at Christie’s London on 25 February 1975, lot 172. Recorded in an insurance document dated March 1985. Accompanied by a copy of the relevant Christie’s catalogue page.

Condition: Unrestored and very well preserved. Intact.

Description: Very well-preserved South Arabian limestone seated statue of a woman, likely used in ancestor cult practice or as a votive offering in a temple. The woman sits on a low pedestal and holds her arms bent at right angles in front of her body. Her hands are clenched into fists, with the fingers indicated by incised lines. Her narrow face looks straight ahead with a friendly expression. The almond-shaped eyes project plastically. The nose is long and pointed, and the mouth is closed with finely drawn lips. Her hair is held in place at the top by a diadem, falls to shoulder length, and leaves the ears exposed. She wears a garment that reaches down to her ankles, beneath which the toes, indicated by parallel incisions, emerge at the bottom. Around her waist is a broad belt, from which a braided cord falls down between the bent legs. Particularly striking are the small, round breasts, which, as is typical for these seated statues, are applied separately. For comparison, see „Jemen – Kunst und Archäologie im Land der Königin von Saba”, Wilfried Seipel (ed.), nos. 395-399, pp. 364-365. For a comparable seated pose, see the alabaster seated statue from Timna, capital of the Kingdom of Qataban in present-day Yemen, in the same publication, no. 275, pp. 334-335.