Tracing the Provenance and Circulation of the Archaic Sculptures found on Delos

Abstract

This paper presents the provenance of numerous Archaic sculptures found on Delos based on preserved dedicatory inscriptions, material, and typological, stylistic and iconographic criteria. These sculptures were often either communal dedications from Archaic poleis or votive offerings from private individuals. Defining with relative precision the centers where these sculptures –primarily kouroi and korai statues, along with other types– were created, serves as a reliable basis for understanding the political, artistic, cultic and cultural interactions between the sacred island and the places of their origin. On a broader level, these sculptural dedications –alongside other material evidence such as architecture and ceramics– highlight the movement of goods, artists and ideas from sculptural centers, primarily Naxos, Paros and beyond, to Delos. On this occasion, the movement of sculptures from these centers to the wider island area, mainland Greece and the entire Mediterranean basin during the same period is concisely presented, contributing to the reconstruction of the networks of ‘traveling’ of cultural goods and the multifased interaction between a multitude of Archaic centers.