Statue from the Nereid Monument

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Marble statue probably representing a Nereid, which occupied one of the intercolumniations of the Nereid monument. The daughters of the sea-deities Nereus and Doris are known as Nereids. Numbering between 50 and 100, they were popular figures in Greek literature. They were believed to be personifications of the waves of the ocean, and benign toward humanity. The best known of the Nereids were Amphitrite, consort of Poseidon (a sea and earthquake god); Thetis, wife of Peleus, king of the Myrmidons, and mother of the hero Achilles; and Galatea. This figure is draped in a fine chiton (tunic), its folds enlivened by the rush of the sea breeze against her. A mantle falls over her left shoulder. She was carried along by a sea bird visible below the hem of her skirt. Her portrayal here is perhaps meant to suggest the means by which the soul of the deceased was transported to the afterlife. The statue is a representation of a draped female figure running to the right. She wears a long unbelted chiton with sleeves which appear to be continuous with a short diploidion that reaches to just below her breasts. This garment is confined by narrow strings passing over the shoulders. In her right hand she probably held part of the skirt and also, possibly, part of a large mantle which passes behind her back and over her left shoulder and is held in her left hand. A sea bird floating over the water with its wings spread appears below the bottom of the folds of the drapery. This figure differs considerably in style and costume from the other Nereids. Her head, right forearm and both feet are missing.