Statuette of Tinia (Zeus)

c. 500–475 BC (perhaps with modern patina)

Statuette of Tinia (Zeus), c. 500–475 BC (perhaps with modern patina). Italy, Etruscan. Bronze; overall: 13.3 x 8.6 x 3.2 cm (5 1/4 x 3 3/8 x 1 1/4 in.). The Cleveland Museum of Art, Purchase from the J. H. Wade Fund 1928.196 Tinia, the most powerful god in the Etruscan pantheon, often appears with a thunderbolt, the same attribute associated with Zeus and Jupiter in Greek and Roman religion and myth. The outstretched left hand may once have held a scepter. Although the figure finds numerous parallels among other Etruscan bronzes of the late 500s and early 400s BC, its surface is oddly rough and mottled with spots, perhaps the result of early modern treatment or coating meant to protect or improve its appearance. A 2001 analysis of the bronze composition showed results consistent with other ancient Etruscan alloys.


[JD1]It may seem obvious, but in the spirit of being super clear, I want to add “ancient” somewhere here—other ancient Etruscan alloys. A break to the right wrist has been repaired with a dowel.