Sculptural Precedent

For the final sculpture of this journey, I chose a sculptural precedent that I first discovered during childhood visits to the old Acropolis Museum (located on the Acropolis itself) with my aunt Emmanuela, an archaeological guide. Decades later, I reconnected with this work, the Kore 684, at the new Acropolis Museum, which opened in 2009, specifically with the prospect of hosting the Parthenon Marbles, currently held at the British Museum in London, UK.

The Kore 684 depicts a young maiden, dated to approximately 500 B.C. The statue is considered a votive offering dedicated to the goddess Athena, originally placed on the Acropolis, near the Parthenon. Following the Persian invasion of 480 B.C., it was buried by the returning Athenians during a ceremonial clearing of the sacred site. This cache, known as the "Perserschutt" (Persian debris), became a true time capsule, preserving this work and dozens of other sculptures until their rediscovery during excavations in the late 19th century.

This statue is a major example of the korai (maidens), iconic figures of the Archaic period (c. 600–480 B.C.) and the female counterparts of the nude kouroi (youths). Korai are always depicted clothed, adopting formal, upright stances, with elaborate drapery and stylized hair. Traces of bright polychromy (color) remain visible on this one as on many others, proving they were not originally white marble. One of their essential features is the "archaic smile," an artistic convention interpreted as an expression of divine grace and vitality rather than a specific human emotion. Other notable korai are preserved in the National Archaeological Museum of Athens and the Louvre.

Taking this exceptional sculpture as a model, I asked my daughter, Sofia, then twelve years old, to pose. My sculpture, Kore, integrates this enigmatic smile with my daughter's features. It is the only sculpture in the Hellenic Heads series to look upward.