Statue of a Muse

This statue young woman wearing a long robe with a mantle wrapped around her shoulders and lower body represents a Muse, one of the goddesses of learning and the arts. The statue was part of a group of Muses and other deities that probably decorated a building devoted to the cult of a Roman emperor. Traces of paint on the hair, eyes, and lips show that the statue was originally brightly painted. The statue's roughly finished back indicates that it probably stood in a niche.

Which of the nine Muses does this statue represent? In Roman art, the individual Muses were originally identified by the attributes they held. In this case, however, the arms of the statue and any attributes she held are gone. Yet there remain some features that help to identify her. Her left arm is bent and probably held a large object, because the stump of a support strut remains on her left breast. Given the range of possible attributes, this suggests that she was holding a kithara. On the Muse's right hip, there are traces of a plektron, the pick used to play this stringed instrument. Roman sculptors portrayed both Erato--the Muse of lyric and love poetry--and Terpsichore--the Muse of dancing and choral song--holding a kithara.