Shield-Shaped Idol

NotesThe figurine is flat and slightly rounded. No element enables us to distinguish one side from the other, or to determine the gender of the figurine. The shield-shaped outline, typical of these idols known as “schematic”, probably represents the silhouette of a seated human body, the legs folded on a flat surface, but without any volume. The discoid head springs from the long tapering neck.

Typologically, these idols can be classified as part of the Beycesultan-Kusura group (the names derive from two archaeological sites located in western Anatolia). Their exact meaning remains mysterious, but they are generally thought to have been associated with the sphere of reproduction (more precisely the fertility of nature) or with beliefs related to the afterlife.

Despite fluctuations between scholars, the Beycesultan-Kusura figurines can be dated to the Early Bronze Age and, more precisely, to the middle of the 3rd millennium.

Complete and in good condition. Neck reglued; minor chips and crack on the body.