by Vanessa Rivera-Herrera, AD&A Museum Intern
Votive Figures
These small figures, called votives, were commonly used in rituals involving the Greco-Roman gods and goddesses. Ancient Greeks would bring them to temples, shrines, and tombs as a way to appease the gods. In fact, shrines were thought to have been built just to house relics like these. In addition to being a gift for the gods, they were made to strengthen relationships between people and gods in anticipation of a favor or to give thanks.
The seated figure in the image is titled the Seated Goddess and is from around the 3rd century B.C.E. She was found in Greece out of terracotta clay and stands seven inches long. Her attributes feature a robe, a crown, and an archaic smile. This smile was a mark of healthiness and well-being. The robe is adorned with symbols on her robe, which may represent what goddess she is. She is seated on a stylized throne, which was typical of the time.
Here are other examples of Greek seated female votive figures found from 3rd-5th century B.C.E.
They were widely produced, often mold-made, from a mold like the one below. The mold made them easier to replicate and shortened the time spent designing each statue. As a result of the mold, the statues were hollow on the inside. The process of creating these votive figures was intricate, yet necessary for these religious rituals.
Creating Ancient Greek Pottery
Pottery was prevalent in Greek life, as they used it in everyday life and in religious ceremonies.
The pottery process, like the one used to create the votive statues, started out with collecting clay from river beds. This clay was stomped on, or thrown to remove air bubbles so that the clay wouldn’t break at the end of its baking process. Then, the clay was molded into the desired shape. Applying slip to decorate the clay was optional, but widely used for black and red figure pottery. After the piece was dried, then one would put it in a hot fire kiln, reaching temperatures of 900°C (1652°F).
Here is a video detailing the full process of creating pottery using ancient Greek methods.
Re-discovering Painted Pottery
Up until recent times, these clay-made antiquities were accepted as unpainted and without decoration. Some statues were even cleaned to remove any previous pigments. These once-vibrant pigments were re-discovered by archaeologists and art historians who realized that the color could be identified and reimagined. If some pigments are too small to see, surgical microscopes are used to pinpoint the exact colors. By revealing certain colors, historians are able to recreate what the statues might have looked like back in ancient times.
Coloring Activity Here is an additional activity where you recreate the seated goddess in your own way. The template is blank, so you will need to color in the ideal colors you think she was painted in. Print out the papercraft, color it in, then cut it out and build it into your own seated goddess. Download the PDF and follow the directions. Here is a completed version.
This blog post was developed and written by Vanessa Rivera-Herrera, AD&A Museum Intern, 2021–22. To learn more about the Art, Design & Architecture Museum Internship Program, please visit: https://museum.ucsb.edu/learn/internship
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