Standing Female Figure

This standing nude female statuette holds its legs together atop a conical base that was probably the casting vent. The back is featureless except for a slight bifurcated raised area, indicating buttocks. The short arms are crossed and hold small projecting breasts. There are two cast neck-rings around her elongated neck. Her head features a prominent pointed nose, a small horizontal groove for a mouth, and two deep, round sockets for eyes; these may have been inlaid with another substance. Two symmetrical locks of hair extend down the side of the face to the middle of the head. The swellings at the ends of the locks may depict ears. A cylindrical tang extends vertically upward from the top of the head; its tip is missing. This impressive female statuette belongs to a prominent group of nude female bronze figures that appear to represent the Canaanite goddess Astarte (1). NOTES: 1. For parallels to this statuette, see H. Seeden, The Standing Armed Figurines in the Levant, Prähistorische Bronzefunde 1.1 (Munich, 1980) no. 98, pl. E; nos. 39.a-40.a, pl. 12; nos. 48, 48.a, and 49, pl. 13; nos. 50-54, pl. 14; and nos. 78 and 80, pl. 20. See also O. Negbi, Canaanite Gods in Metal: An Archaeological Study of Ancient Syro-Palestinian Figurines (Tel Aviv, 1976) no. 1525, pl. 38; and no. 1532, pl. 39, which is a modern cast from a stone bivalve mold. David G. Mitten