SCHEMA E DIMENSIONE. 'SCULTURA IDEALE' IN PICCOLO FORMATO DI ETÀ ELLENISTICA E ROMANA

This research is focused on the study of small-sized ‘ideal sculpture’ from Hellenistic and Roman times, a category of objects in which seriality in form and variation in size are combined. These statuettes are not uniform in terms of artistic and material qualities, closely conditioned by the object’s function as well as the customer’s personal taste and means, lending themselves to a large variety of functions and contexts associated with extremely different levels of manufacture and customers, often very poor. However, it is wrong to state that miniatures in general were nothing more than a cheap and simplified alternative to larger scale copies: their peculiar format allowed for a wider range of choices, in terms of use of either cheap or extremely costly materials, methods of production, and modes of fruition. Analysing the relationship between plastic and literary arts, the study of small-sized ideal plastic related to two of the most representative subjects (Herakles and Aphrodite) contribute to a better understanding of the status of this production in the development of ancient art and concur to redefine some interesting aspects of the Hellenistic and Roman way of intending the aesthetic value.