Page 111 - Studia Universitatis Hereditati, vol 13(2) (2025)

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Figure 2: Caryatid from Tralles, Istanbul Archaeological
Museum, inv. no. 1189 (D-DAI-IST-671)
the upper arms indicates that the right arm was
raised while the left was lowered. Its back is un-
finished, suggesting that it was originally posi-
tioned against a wall. However, the figure lacks
defining attributes, making a precise identifica-
tion difficult – especially considering that, in The Caryatid from Osor (Apsorus): A Provincial Reinterpretation of a Classical Motif
the provinces, the iconography of deities and Figure 3: Caryatid, Le Musée public national de
other mythological figures was not always di- Cherchell, inv. no. S 89 (photo: Amel Bouder)
rectly copied from the prototypes. Instead, pos-
ture, movement, or attributes were often subject of the Erechtheion in Athens, that were erected
5
to minor or significant modifications and devi- around 415 BC. In addition to serving as struc-
ations (cf. lately Witschel 1995, 251, n. 22; Dor- tural supports in place of simpler columns, their
ka Moreno et al. 2021, 5–9). Of particular inter- role evolved to become primarily aesthetic and
est is the arrangement of the locks in her braids, non-structural (Polacco and Traversari 1988, 20).
which fall over her breasts. This archaic hair- Centuries later, this hairstyle was adopted by the
style closely resembles the rigid, stylized hair of caryatides in Rome, used as decorative elements
the korai in archaic Greek art and was also em- in the Forum Augusti, which exerted a signifi-
ployed for the renowned caryatides on the porch cant influence on provincial art. 6

5 On korai in Erechtheion inter alios: Lauter (1976, 12–40), Schmidt (1982, 79–84), Jenkins (2006, 125–8). On dating see esp.
Lauter (1976, 16–7), Vickers (2014, 123–31). On their hairstyle: Schwab and Rose (2015, 1–4).
6 A number of studies have addressed the caryatides from the Forum of Augustus and their role within the broader architectural
and ideological programme: cf. e.g. Zanker (1968, 11–3), Hölscher (2007, 119–20), La Rocca (2011, 993–1010), Lo Monaco (2021,
34–6).