Statue of Seated Minerva

myminifactory

This statue embodies Athena, clad in a chiton and himation that envelops her head. The face and neck, now gone, have been replaced with a plaster cast of the Athena Carpegna. The aegis featuring gorgoneions on her chest makes it clear that this goddess is Athena, the Roman Minerva, often depicted as a helmeted female warrior. Its enormous size suggests that this was an image used in worship, although a theory remains linking it to the temple of Minerva on the Aventine. The sculpture bears the distinctive marks of the second half of the 5th century B.C. and its use of multiple materials ties it to the tradition of Greek cult statues made from gold and ivory by Phidias during that era. Augustan period artwork