Seated Female Figurine

Place of OriginSyria or Iraq

DateLate 6th millennium BCE (or Late 5th to 4th millennium BCE?)

DimensionsH: 2 5/8 in. (6.7 cm); W: 1 3/16 in. (3.0 cm); Depth: 1 in. (2.54 cm)

MediumHand-molded earthenware with painted decoration

ClassificationSculpture

Credit LineGift of the Popplestone Family

Object number

2006.79

Not on View

DescriptionA small, hand-modeled earthenware figure of a seated woman. The figure features extremely wide, stylized thighs and a tapered lower body that serves as a base. The head is simplified into a tall, pinched, beak-like projection without distinct facial features. Dark umber paint is applied in horizontal stripes across the torso and legs, with larger circular markings on the face suggesting eyes.

Label TextThe Halaf culture, dating to the sixth millennium BCE in Northern Mesopotamia, was composed of small, agrarian villages spread across modern-day Syria, Iraq, and southeastern Turkey. Initially thought to be a homogeneous, pan-Mesopotamian culture due to its ceramics, recent research highlights regional and chronological diversity. Settlements were largely egalitarian, with no clear evidence of centralized elites, and relied on agriculture, pastoralism, and skilled craft-making. While Halaf identity is primarily defined through ceramics, figurines provide additional insight. Typically small and hand-modeled from clay, these figurines often depict young adult females with exaggerated features, possibly for symbolic purposes. Earlier interpretations linked them to goddess worship or social stratification, but newer studies suggest a more complex cultural role.Published ReferencesAmbrose, John, Ancient Art XXXVI, Medfield, Fragments of Time, Inc., 2005, no. 4.