PAIR OF ROMAN MARBLE HARPOCRATES FIGURES

PAIR OF ROMAN MARBLE HARPOCRATES FIGURES
Ca. AD 100-300.A pair of exquisite Roman marble statues depicting the Roman god of silence, secrets and confidentiality, Harpocrates. The statues depict the god with a short, chubby body, elbow resting on a pillar in a slight contrapposto pose. The heads of the statues are near identical, with broad, flat noses, full lips and small, heavy-lidded eyes, all framed by luxurious curling locks of hair that cascade to the shoulders. There is some differentation between the figures, as one is depicted with a pot belly and less developed pectoral muscles than the other. Harpocrates, a god of Graeco-Egyptian origin, was the the son of Isis and Osiris and was frequently represented as a chubby infant or young man with his finger to his mouth, making these examples rare variations of the type. He was assmiliated into Roman religion, and the aformentioned gesture, once signifiying youth, was misinterpreted by the Romans as a sign of silence (Ovid, Meta., 9.688ff). Size: 660-690mm x 250-280mm; Weight: 18k/20.8kg Provenance: From a private French collection; acquired from Helios Ancient Art, London, UK, in 1990; formerly forming part of a West Sussex estate, acquired between 1960s-1970s.