Terracotta Sculpture and Roofs. New Discoveries & Perspectives

Alongside great works of sculpture created from shining marble, which undoubtedly constitute the highest expression of creation in the field of plastic arts, sculpture works in clay, precisely due to their inexpensive material, are usually considered of secondary or even dubious artistic value: yet this view cannot be accepted. A series of individual terracotta sculpture finds in various parts of Greece over the last 25 years provided the occasion to re-examine this category of sculpture made of terracotta or the so-called “living” material, on the surface of which, often, even the colors are preserved. Approaching the new finds presupposes the revisit also of older ones, and pose questions relating to the activity of local workshops and their association with the Corinthian one, the latter of which is always believed to be the leading one. The large-scale terracotta works were mostly free-standing sculptures, but in some cases, they belonged also to the roofs of buildings. In cases where sculpted decoration and tiles have been found together, their correlation is irrefutable, and, therefore, it is, necessary to study at the same time both the roofing elements, as well as the roof’s plastic decoration. The book includes examples from most areas of the Greek world, a difficult and not always possible task. However, there are areas of Greece, such as Crete and the Aegean, which are eventually not represented, even though their activity in this field of art is not unknown. Some contributions regarding the Italian peninsula, provide the opportunity and give the necessary impetus to rethink the close ties between the two worlds.