Mycenaean Terracotta Statuette in T Symbol from the 14th-13th century B.C.
This statuette, the lower part of which is hollow, was modelled by hand. It
depicts a slender, graceful woman with rather abstract features. It was from the end of the 15th century BCE that figurines of this type began to appear in Mycenaean dwellings, tombs and sanctuaries.
Greek terracotta figure showing the myth of Europe
Greek terracotta figure showing the myth of Europe
The group comprises two figures: with natural grace, a young woman rides astride a bull that is galloping rapidly towards the viewer’s right. Indeed, the young woman is Europa (the mythological figure after whom our continent is named), who was one of the three daughters of the King of Tyre (a major Phoenician coastal city). She was abducted by Zeus on the beach where she was playing with her sisters: the god appeared to her in the form of a magnificent white bull and carried her, riding the waves of the sea, all the way to Crete.
The figurine is flat and slightly rounded. The shield-shaped outline, typical of these idols known as “schematic”, probably represents the silhouette of a seated human body, but without any volume.