Terracotta revetment with a griffin

Art Historical Context

This striking terracotta revetment plaque, featuring a majestic griffin, dates to the 6th century BCE during the Archaic period.ed by an unknown East Greek or Lydian, it once adorned the walls or roofs of a grand building, serving as protective architectural decoration. Measuring just 7½ x 10 x 1¾ inches, its modest size belies its role in larger friezes, where such plaques created vibrant, narrative displays. Griffins—hybrid creatures with the body of a lion and the head and wings of an eagle—were potent symbols of power and guardianship in ancient cultures, blending Greek mythology with Nea...