HOME :
Asian Art :
Indus Valley Figures : Terracotta figurine of a fertility goddess
|
 |
|
|
Terracotta figurine of a fertility goddess - LK.238
Origin: India/Pakistan
Circa: 2800
BC
to 2000
BC
Dimensions:
5.51" (14.0cm) high
x 1.65" (4.2cm) wide
Collection: Asian Art
Medium: Terracotta
£1,500.00
Location: Great Britain
|
|
|
Photo Gallery |
|
Description |
The Indus Valley Civilisation was a Bronze Age
civilisation (3300–1300 BC) that mainly flourished
in the northwestern regions of South Asia,
extending from what today is northeast
Afghanistan to Pakistan and northwest India.
Along with ancient Egypt and Mesopotamia it
was one of three earliest civilisations of the world
and of the three, the most widespread.
At its peak, the Indus Civilisation may have had a
population of over five million.
Though the Indus Valley script remains
undeciphered, the numerous seals, statuary and
pottery discovered during excavations, not to
mention the urban ruins, have enabled scholars
to construct a reasonably plausible account of
the Indus Valley civilization.
Inhabitants of the ancient Indus river valley
developed new techniques in handicraft
(carnelian products, seal carving) and metallurgy
(copper, bronze, lead, and tin). The Indus cities
are noted for their urban planning, baked brick
houses, elaborate drainage systems, water
supply systems, and clusters of large non-
residential buildings.
After many decades of research, the Indus
Civilization is still something of an enigma -- an
ancient civilization with a writing system that still
awaits convincing decipherment, monumental
architecture whose function still eludes us, no
monumental art, a puzzling decline, and little
evidence of the identity of its direct descendants.
In a civilization extending over an area so vast,
we expect to find monumental art and/or
architectural symbols of power displaying the
names of the powerful. Instead, we find an
emphasis on small, elegant art and sophisticated
craft technology.
In this so-called "faceless civilization," three-
dimensional representations of living beings in
the Harappan world are confined to a few stone
and bronze statues and some small objects
crafted in faience, stone, and other materials -
with one important exception. Ranging in size
from slightly larger than a human thumb to almost
30 cm. in height, the anthropomorphic and animal
terracotta figurines from Harappa and other Indus
Civilization sites offer a rich reflection of some of
the Harappan ideas about representing life in the
Bronze Age.
- (LK.238)
|
|
|