Bronze Figure of Embracing Man and Woman
Files
Publication Date
11-12-2025
Time Period
4th century BCE
Abstract
This embracing couple – a man and woman, both nude – originally formed the handle of the lid of a bronze cista, a cylindrical cosmetic box. The couple’s loving embrace embodies a happy marriage and may indicate that the box was presented as a wedding gift. Cistae were the local product of Praeneste (present-day Palestrina), an Etruscan outpost southeast of Rome in Latium. Over 100 complete specimens are known to have survived. They were mostly recovered in illicit excavations during the 19th century from the tombs of the necropolis at Praeneste. While they served a funerary purpose to accompany the deceased in the afterlife, they have also functioned as toiletry boxes in daily life. Larger examples may have been used in ritual contexts.
Model Creation Date
03/27/2025
Keywords
etruscan, bronze-figurine, archaeology
Alt Text
A three-dimensional model of a bronze sculpture that depicts a nude man and woman standing next to each other with one hand sitting on the other's shoulder and the opposite hand on their hips. There are lines and impressions at their feet that may indicate they are intended to be wearing some kind of footwear. The model can be rotated, moved, and zoomed in and out to allow for viewing of additional details at multiple angles.
Extent
1 3D Model
Media Type
Models (Representations); Renderings (Drawings)
Download Size
37MB
Geometry
476.3k Triangles
Format
Digital Only
Materials
1
Rigged Geometries
No
Scale Transformations
No
Textures
1
UV Layers
Yes
Vertex Colors
No
Vertices
238.1k
Recommended Citation
USF Institute for Digital Exploration, "Bronze Figure of Embracing Man and Woman" (2025). Tampa Museum of Art Etruscan Collection. 6.
https://digitalcommons.usf.edu/etruscan/6
