Who is this?

[mucgwyrt]

I bought this in Greece when I was a kid; it's a goddess of some sort; any idea who it might be?

http://www.well-of-dreams.com/ebay/who.jpg

[Aidron]

Might not be a goddess at all, but merely a statue of a woman. It's quite common actually to find statues of generic women and men, I see them all the time.

However, judging from her face and hair she reminds me of the statue of Hestia I have. Though she does not carry with her the usual bowl and urn that many do. Her pose is reminiscent of one that is often likened to Aphrodite, but that most certainly is not Aphrodite. Persephone is also a possibility, but I sincerely doubt it is her as well.

[mucgwyrt]

:uhhuhuh: I guess I just assumed it was a goddess because the place I bought it had hundreds of goddess statues; I bought a couple including athene, and venus-de-milo :)

[Faeawyn]

I've seen several statues and images of aphrodite with her hands in her hair..... so perhaps aphrodite?

[mucgwyrt]

Hmm, ok well I stuck it on ebay (http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&item=5580842033) as a non-descript 'Greek Goddess' :lol: "possibley hestia or aphrodite" :D
Thanks guys xx

[Dio]

Hestia is my first thought.

[SandStorm]

I read somewhere that all the classic goddesses (and gods) images had some sings of identification, like a type of hair, or a weapon, position... Perhaps if you look in an archeological page or book could appear some information about this...
She could be a muse too...

[Kalika]

Hellene is the first name that came to mind for me.

Aphrodite may be a possibility as well, based on the pose.

[Aidron]

I read somewhere that all the classic goddesses (and gods) images had some sings of identification, like a type of hair, or a weapon, position... Perhaps if you look in an archeological page or book could appear some information about this...
She could be a muse too...


This is quite true. There is no Hellenic deity I can think of which does not have some significant characteristic in order to identify who they are in works of art such as statuary and pottery.

Aphrodite for example has long flowing hair and very minimalist garments usually.

Hestia typically has her hair pulled up in such a fashion and carries a bowl and urn.

Athene has a spear, her battle armor and the aegis.

So forth and so on. So, like I said, Hestia and Aphrodite do not look like very promising answers for this statue. If anything it looks like a combination of both of their characteristics-which I can expect with it being a modern statue.

[Gede]

MM~
I instantly thought of one of the Graces...

Namaste, Gede...

[Antoninus]

My first guess would be Aphrodite. But as someone pointed out earlier, it could be a statue of a generic woman.

Could it be a prostitute? She has no other identifying marks and her pose is seductive. Being a prostitute was not a disrespected position in Rome. I dont see any other marks that could distinctify her as a goddess or a noblewoman, she isnt wearing any fancy clothes or apparent jewelry.

[mucgwyrt]

So I actually found another statue just like mine in a thrift store nearby; it had an engraving on the bottom, saying something in what was presumabley greek:
tamarpa (I think :bigredblu )

:whatgives

[Chesna]

I do not think Hestia.. she was often pictured with veils.. as veils are one of her symbols...with no real identifying marks.. I would hate to pass a guess.

Chesna

[Ben Gruagach]

I suspect that SandStorm or Gede might have guessed it -- I think it's one of the muses (http://www.eliki.com/portals/fantasy/circle/define.html) (perhaps Polyhymnia (http://www.eliki.com/portals/fantasy/circle/polyhymnia.html)) or one of the graces (http://www.gods-heros-myth.com/godpages/thegraces.html).