Greece, Crete / 650–600 BCE
Kriophoros (Ram-Bearer), Statuette
The Cleveland Museum of Art catalogs Kriophoros (Ram-Bearer), Statuette as sculpture (Greece, Crete · 650–600 BCE).
This heroic figure is shown presenting a ram, most likely as a sacrificial offering to a god or goddess.
A CLOSER LOOK
The museum identifies this sculpture as terracotta and polychrome.
The museum's collection notes: In Greek art, the kriophoros is usually a shepherd or, later, Hermes. This statuette may be unique in presenting a warrior-hero as kriophoros. It is certainly one of the earliest sculptural representations of this type. The figure appears to be wearing a helmet, secured under the chin with a painted strap. Double outlines, reinforced at the bottom with incision and adorned with dotted circles in the area of the nipples, were used to suggest breastplates. A thick waist belt, decorated with painted crosshatched lines, is clearly the heroic zoster (warrior's belt). As described in ancient Homeric poetry, the zoster is the ultimate symbol of valo
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The Cleveland Museum of ArtKriophoros (Ram-Bearer), StatuetteOriginal explanation based on the sources above. Images carry their own reuse terms.