Terracotta female figure

Terracotta female figure

An item at Metropolitan Museum of Art

Mycenaean terracotta "phi" figurines are named for their resemblance to shape of the Greek letter "phi." Produced in great numbers, such female figurines have frequently been found in shrines, graves and even houses. Their symbolism was complex, and their use probably varied according to the circumstances. In general, they are thought to represent goddesses associated with fertility.

Greek and Roman Art

An exhibit at Metropolitan Museum of Art

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The Museum's collection of Greek and Roman art comprises more than thirty thousand works ranging in date from the Neolithic period (ca. 4500 B.C.) to the time of the Roman emperor Constantine's conversion to Christianity in A.D. 312. It includes the art of many cultures and is among the most comprehensive in North America. The geographic regions represented are Greece and Italy, but not as delimited by modern political frontiers: Greek colonies were established around the Mediterranean basin and on the shores of the Black Sea, and Cyprus became increasingly Hellenized. For Roman art, the geographical limits coincide with the expansion of the Roman Empire. The department also exhibits the art of prehistoric Greece (Helladic, Cycladic, and Minoan) and pre-Roman art of Italic peoples, notably the Etruscans.