Tritoness or Scylla Relief Applique
Unknown Artist
late 200s BCE
Medium
bronze with copper inlays
Dimensions
{"overall":{"height":0.224,"width":0.245,"depth":0.078}}
Classification
Metalwork
Department
Greek and Roman Art
Museum
Cleveland Museum of Art
Credit
Leonard C. Hanna Jr. Fund
Accession Number
1985.184
About this artwork
The seaweed garment, finned gills, and webbed ears give this female bust appliqué all the hallmarks of an ocean dweller. She may be a Tritoness, a minor goddess of the sea and the female counterpart to the more common Triton. However, her intense gaze and raised arm clutching perhaps the hilt of a sword suggest she may be Scylla, a sea monster that first appears in Homer’s Odyssey. Without the Tritoness’s fishtail or Scylla’s lower body made of dogs’ heads, it is difficult to differentiate. Cert...