Funerary Stele with Two Sphinxes in the Metropolitan Museum of Art, March 2018

Limestone funerary stele (shaft) surmounted by two sphinxes


Period: Classical

Date: last quarter of the 5th century B.C.

Culture: Cypriot

Medium: Limestone

Dimensions: Overall: 34 3/4 x 26 15/16in. (88.2 x 68.5cm)

Classification: Stone Sculpture

Credit Line: The Cesnola Collection, Purchased by subscription, 1874–76

Accession Number: 74.51.2499

Elegant sphinxes are positioned back-to-back with their heads turned so that they could be seen in three-quarters perspective. The calm beauty of the creature's head, the form of the palmettes, and the egg and dart molding that decorates the base of the platform are typical of Greek art of the fifth century B.C.

Text from: www.metmuseum.org/art/collection/search/242050