Female Torso (possibly Europa)

myminifactory

By the late 19th century, the Royal Academy Schools had accumulated a prized collection of casts from ancient times. This female form, possibly depicting Andromeda or Europa, was acquired in 1855. It stands alone as the only genuine antique sculpture within R.A. collections. Despite exposure to harsh weather and losses over time, the figure retains an elegance and vitality characteristic of late classical Greek art. The clinging drapery reveals a softness of form that contrasts with the athletic ideal displayed by earlier 5th-century sculptures. The lack of modeling on the back suggests that the figure was intended to stand in an architectural recess. Although widely attributed to Timotheus, some scholars argue that the sculpture is actually a Roman replica of a Greek original. It earned great admiration from Victorian classicists such as Sir Lawrence Alma-Tadema and his contemporaries.