Akropolis 68053 (figure 17) continues the stylistic trends of the series while
appearing radically different from Akropolis 619. This example is dated c. 530-520 B.C.E.54 and is extant from the crown of the head to the knees; it represents the standard style of Akropolis korai. Hair at the crown is finely incised with individual strands of hair held against the scalp by a fillet that bears traces of pigment; the fillet is raised slightly from the forehead at the top, giving the impression of stiffness, but it is clearly a
a few other examples.
52 A funerary kore found at Merenda in Attica. Boardman 1978, 73, 75, fig. 108.
53
LeChat 1903, 91; Langlotz (in Schrader) 1939, 64, fig. 34; Richter 1968, 47, figs. 198-200; Boardman 1978, 70-71, fig. 99; Karakasi 2003, 118, 124, 129, pls. 144-45, 248-51.
continuous, single band of fabric (like that of Akropolis 677) rather than a stephane, the thick diadem worn by later korai (see below) that could stop at the ears or be secured by a fabric band behind the head. Her hair is crimped and falls in individual locks above the ears, is pushed back over the ears and beneath the fillet to flow down the shoulders and back. Four locks hang over each shoulder in front and the remaining hair is a single mass in back. Akropolis 680 wears large, round earrings carved of stone that also bear remains of pigmentation. Akropolis 680 has a squared oval face with gently protruding carved eyebrows and eyes pointed at the corners with delicately carved lids. The nose, now broken, was not wide; the bridge of the nose is smooth and angular. The mouth is carved in an “Archaic smile,” closed and drawn up at the corners. Her lower lip is full, and her cheekbones are evident by modeling. Akropolis 680 wears a chiton and short himation ; the himation looks comparable in fabric weight to that of Akropolis 619, but here it is worn loosely rather than tightly wrapped. The chiton is high-necked; a meander pattern marks the neckline of the garment, which falls in ripples from the neck and the clasps on the left arm. Over the chiton “blouse” is the decorated himation; one corner is draped over the right shoulder, around the body, and tucked in to the left side of the himation below the breast. Akropolis 680 wears a carved bracelet on her left wrist and holds an apple or pomegranate in her outstretched right hand. The himation falls in draped pleats, longer on the right side and shorter on the left; the upper edge is folded over. Beneath the himation, the chiton skirt is light, showing the contours of the buttocks and legs as well as painted ornamentation on the descending over-fold. Akropolis 680 originally grasped the chiton skirt in her left hand, pulling it tightly across her hips and thighs. Modeling at the back of the legs suggests that the tautness of the fabric is exaggerated. Although broken
below the knees, the left leg appears to stride forward. There is an attachment hole on her right thigh, pierced through the lower edge of the himation; this may indicate a pieced addition.
Akropolis 68255 (figure 18) is in many ways similar to Akropolis 680. This
sculpture, c. 530-520 B.C.E.56, bears a comparable raised stephane around the head, similar facial features, and clothing of the same arrangement and style. This example is better preserved than Akropolis 680, missing both of her hands but otherwise complete. The most noticeable difference in Akropolis 682 is her hairstyle; although she wears a similar fillet her forehead is covered in tiny vertical locks terminating in snail-shell curls, and her hair descends from behind her ears in coiling locks of varying lengths. Again, four carved locks hang over the shoulders in front, but at the back the hair is divided into locks that are banded at the ends, suggesting braids that hang together within a
rectangular mass. The head also includes a metal attachment rod about two inches behind the fillet. This kore has a face more oval than squared, and the eyes are heavily lidded and pointed at both ends. Facial features include a long and slender nose, highly modeled cheekbones, an Archaic smile, and a slightly protruding chin. This kore also wears large, round earrings that turn outward from her head. This turning is in contrast to Akropolis 680, whose earrings and ears lie flat against her skull. Akropolis 682 has a longer neck than Akropolis 680; her shoulders seem more proportional to her hips, though her bosom is fuller than most others. The chiton “blouse” is similar to that of Akropolis 680, but the left sleeve displays a patterned edge and the neckline is clearly delineated at the
55 LeChat 1903, 83; Langlotz (in Schrader) 1939, 86, figs. 53-56; Richter 1968, 73-74, figs. 362-367;
Boardman 1978, 83, fig. 151; Karakasi 2003, 117, 125, 130, 147, pls. 146-47, 252-53.
collarbone. The himation here is remarkably similar in arrangement to that of Akropolis 680, including the overfold along the diagonal edge, but it is more detailed in the softly crinkled fabric around the right shoulder. Her muscular legs are visible underneath her chiton skirt, which is pulled taut to the left side by a bracelet-bedecked hand and displays the rounded musculature of the legs and buttocks as well as the richly patterned
descending hem. Her sandaled feet are positioned apart with the left foot slightly forward, but her body does not show evidence of a weight shift.
Akropolis 67057 (figure 19) represents a shift in the conventional dress of the
korai. Dated c. 520-510 B.C.E.58, Akropolis 670 appears to be wearing a cap or some fabric over the crown of her head; an attachment rod is extant, but bent. The convention of four long locks arranged over the front of each shoulder is continued here, although the locks are angular and accordion-folded; at the back, the hair is rendered in a folding pattern that is separated at the middle. Akropolis 670 wears a stephane, or diadem, rather than a fillet; this clearly stands up on her head, painted with a vegetal design, and is secured behind the ears with a fabric band. Above her forehead fat, rounded curls are parted at the center. The face is rounded, with a slightly protruding chin, Archaic smile, and a wider nose than has been previously seen. Her cheekbones are connected
naturalistically to her nostrils, and the bridge of the nose is angular and flattened. There are no eyebrows per se, only the sharply modeled ocular cavity with slanting, almond- shaped eyes and heavy lids. The eyes display traces of pigmented irises. Akropolis 670 wears large, round earrings that are again close to the skull. Her neckline has a wide
57 LeChat 1903, 92; Langlotz (in Schrader) 1939, 50, figs. 14-16; Richter 1968, 76-77, figs. 377-380;
Boardman 1978, 83, fig. 153; Karakasi 2003, 118-120, 130, pls. 152-154, 257-258.
edge, and appears slightly lower than the previous examples. Her neck seems longer because of this lower neckline, but is in fact not that long; her heavily carved hair adds to this effect. Akropolis 670 wears no himation, only a chiton with a long, crinkly “blouse” and sleeves that gape at the elbows. The right arm is broken between the wrist and the elbow, but was bent at the elbow in an offering gesture. Below the waist the chiton is belted under the over fold and continues as a light “skirt” which is gathered to display the legs and buttocks. This gathering, or paryphe, is held in the center of the body, below the navel, rather than off to one side. The skirt is draped symmetrically away from this gathering in front, and the legs are positioned together though the feet are lost. Akropolis 670 seems less shapely than others of the Akropolis series because of the loose upper portion of the chiton, but the curving small of her back and her high breasts are still evident beneath.
Akropolis 67459 (figure 20), the “Pouting Kore,” is late in the series, dated to c.
500 B.C.E.60 This kore is extant from the mid-thighs up, and is well known for her unique facial expression. Beneath a curving stephane, which seems to float atop the head and is unsecured at the back, Akropolis 674 has dark painted eyebrows, heavily lidded and painted eyes, a slender nose with a rounded bridge, and a mouth set naturalistically at rest. She does not truly “pout,” but contrasting her mouth with those with “Archaic smiles” makes her seem so.61 In fact, the corners of her lips curve upwards. Her
cheekbones are evident from the slight upward curve of the lips, and her face is full and
59 LeChat 1903, 86; Langlotz (in Schrader) 1939, 93, figs. 62-67; Richter 1968, 81-82, figs. 377-380;
Boardman 1978, 86, fig. 158; Karakasi 2003, 118, 123-125, pls. 178-179, 269-272.
60 Richter 1968, 81.
61 For a convincing pout, see the face of Akropolis 686, possibly the upper half of Akropolis 609, the
round. Her chin does not protrude, and her neck is long. Her shoulders are quite narrow compared to previous examples, and her hairstyle has been reduced to only three long locks in front. The forehead is covered with wavy, massed locks that flow continuously without a part and seem held at the ears by the large disc earrings. Around the back of the head, Akropolis 674 has thick, angular tresses that abruptly terminate; the hair at her back waves in a regular, zig-zag pattern. There is no band or tie separating the two styles of hair, although the change of style follows the curve of the stephane at the front of the head. The diadem is broken, but appears to stand up from the head. An attachment rod remains visible at the top of the head. The chiton is typical, crinkled at the top and flowing underneath the himation; the himation is asymmetrical and banded (with an overfold at the diagonal edge) as seen in Akropolis 680 and 682. Although the arms are broken at the elbows, it seems that Akropolis 674 grasped her bunched skirt in her left hand and made an offering gesture with her right. The bunched skirt highlights the curving thighs and buttocks, and the fabric is more naturalistically rendered as drawn to the side. Exaggerated tightness across the buttocks is still evident, as is the painted over- fold edge of the chiton.