Lykosoura Drapery

This cast of a section of drapery is part of an original sculpture called the Colossal Cult Statue Group by Damophon at Lykosoura. In its original form, the sculpture included the two goddesses Despoina and Demeter who sat on a throne flanked by Anytos and Artemis. Behind them was a large altar that had two triton statues as legs. The section shown here is the drapery that would have decorated the altar where animal sacrifices were made to honor Despoina, the patron deity of the local people of Lykosoura. The sculpture originally sat in the middle of the Temple of Despoina.

The sculpture, created in the 2^nd century B.C.E. during the Hellenistic period of Greece, depicts the myth of Despoina and Demeter. The sculptor Damophon was renowned for creating sculptures associated with cult and myth. This kind of representation can be seen in the drapery cast in the collection at Fairfield University. Visual references are made to characters involved in the myth of Despoina and Demeter, such as Poseidon and Zeus. They are represented with eagles and tritons which would have been easily recognized by the people of that time period.

The heads of the four original sculptures still survive as well as this drapery piece, which can be seen either in the National Archaeological Museum of Athens or the Archaeological Museum of Lykosoura. It is very fortunate that Fairfield University has this cast which represents an important work from the Hellenistic period in Greek art.

L.A.-A.