Female figurine (marble) found in Thessaly, dating to 5300-3300 BCE, the period in Greece known as the Late Neolithic. Female figurines in various materials--clay, limestone, or marble like this one--dating to the Late Neolithic have been found throughout Greece, including on Aegean islands such as Karpathos. Their simplified, stylized depiction of human anatomy has been seen as a precursor to the Cycladic art style prevalent from the end of the Neolithic into the early Bronze Age. The significance of the figurines is much debated: perhaps inevitably, they have sometimes been read as fertility deities, but without knowledge of their broader cultural context, no meaning or meanings can be called definite.

Kingston Lacy (Dorset), August 2025