Girl with a heron: gender and the erotic in Greek iconography (sixth-fourth centuries BCE)
On several classical Greek seals, herons are represented alongside women. The aim of this text is to provide elements of explanation in order to clarify the meaning of this motif. To do so, we need to take into account the devices on Greek seals showing herons with or without women, but also the Gre...
שמור ב:
| הוצא לאור ב: | URI:https://journals.openedition.org/cliowgh, |
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| מחבר ראשי: | |
| פורמט: | Article ou chapitre numérique |
| שפה: | Anglais |
| יצא לאור: |
Clio
2022
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| נושאים: | |
| גישה מקוונת: | Accès Université d'Orléans et IFPM Accès Université d'Orléans et IFPM |
| סיכום: | On several classical Greek seals, herons are represented alongside women. The aim of this text is to provide elements of explanation in order to clarify the meaning of this motif. To do so, we need to take into account the devices on Greek seals showing herons with or without women, but also the Greek vase-painting of the sixth-fourth centuries BC. Some specialists have interpreted this creature as a sign making it possible to recognize women’s apartments and have thus considered the bird simply as a gender marker, signifying the difference between spaces allotted to women or to men. However, images on vases and seals suggest that the heron can also figure as an image related to erotic exchange and heterosexual practice. The heron therefore denotes above all relations between men and women. |
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