{"meta":{"version":"2.1","_links":{"self":{"href":"https://api.vam.ac.uk/v2/object/O308504"},"collection_page":{"href":"https://collections.vam.ac.uk/item/O308504/"}},"images":{"_primary_thumbnail":"https://framemark.vam.ac.uk/collections/2019ML0449/full/!100,100/0/default.jpg","_iiif_image":"https://framemark.vam.ac.uk/collections/2019ML0449/","_alt_iiif_image":[],"imageResolution":"high","_images_meta":[{"assetRef":"2019ML0449","copyright":"© Victoria and Albert Museum, London","sensitiveImage":false}]},"see_also":{"_iiif_pres":"https://iiif.vam.ac.uk/collections/O308504/manifest.json","_alt_iiif_pres":[]}},"record":{"systemNumber":"O308504","accessionNumber":"621-1884","objectType":"Figure group","titles":[{"title":"Figure group","type":""}],"summaryDescription":"","physicalDescription":"This terracotta figure group is a reproduction of what is likely a 19th-century forgery of a Tanagra figurine. It depicts Aphrodite reclining on a draped couch, her weight supported by her right elbow, which rests on a cushion, as she turns her gaze to the left. Her body faces forward, with a subtle twist at the hips. With her left hand, she touches a necklace at her chest, from which a teardrop-shaped black pendant or amulet hangs. Her wavy hair is gathered into a knot atop her head, and a length of drapery is wrapped around and falls from her right leg. Behind her, two small winged Erotes (both headless) lift a large cloth, preparing to drape it over her shoulders. The surface retains traces of taupe pigment, rubbed away in places. \n\nFollowing the rediscovery of the Tanagra necropolis in the 1870s, demand for Greek terracotta figurines surged across Europe, giving rise to a thriving market for replicas and forgeries. By the 1880s, workshops (particularly those inspired by pieces from Asia Minor) were producing inventive pastiches to satisfy collectors’ tastes for the antique. These forgeries, often vividly polychromed and theatrically composed, entered both private and institutional collections, including the South Kensington Museum (V&A), Louvre and the Metropolitan Museum of Art. It is highly likely that this reclining Aphrodite group belongs to this wave of 19th-century Tanagra forgeries, reflecting the period’s fascination with classical beauty and its blurred line between authenticity and imitation\n\n","artistMakerPerson":[],"artistMakerOrganisations":[],"artistMakerPeople":[],"materials":[{"text":"Terracotta","id":"AAT10669"}],"techniques":[{"text":"Moulded","id":"x30076"}],"materialsAndTechniques":"Terracotta","categories":[{"text":"Sculpture","id":"THES48896"},{"text":"Ceramics","id":"THES48982"}],"styles":[],"collectionCode":{"text":"CER","id":"THES48594"},"images":["2019ML0449"],"imageResolution":"high","galleryLocations":[{"current":{"text":"004","id":"THES333728"},"free":"","case":"","shelf":"","box":""}],"partTypes":[[{"text":"Figure group","id":""}]],"contentWarnings":[{"apprise":"","note":""}],"placesOfOrigin":[],"productionDates":[{"date":{"text":"19th century","earliest":"1800-01-01","latest":"1899-12-31"},"association":{"text":"made","id":"x28654"},"note":""}],"associatedObjects":[],"creditLine":"","dimensions":[],"dimensionsNote":"","marksAndInscriptions":[],"objectHistory":"","historicalContext":"","briefDescription":"Terracotta figure group of a Classical scene, late-19th century.","bibliographicReferences":[],"production":"","productionType":{"text":"","id":""},"contentDescription":"","contentPlaces":[],"associatedPlaces":[],"contentPerson":[],"associatedPerson":[],"contentOrganisations":[],"associatedOrganisations":[],"contentPeople":[],"associatedPeople":[],"contentEvents":[],"associatedEvents":[],"contentOthers":[],"contentConcepts":[],"contentLiteraryRefs":[],"galleryLabels":[],"partNumbers":["621-1884"],"accessionNumberNum":"621","accessionNumberPrefix":"","accessionYear":1884,"otherNumbers":[],"copyNumber":"","aspects":["WHOLE"],"assets":[],"recordModificationDate":"2025-10-08","recordCreationDate":"2009-06-24","availableToBook":true}}