Figure of a Woman

Marble sculpture of a woman leaning on her left arm. Her head has been lost, and the clothes that cover her body have been sculpted in a way that resembles the wet-drapery technique. She holds a scroll in her right hand. The sculpture's exact purpose is not known. One theory suggests that it was positioned on an item of furniture, such as a triclinium (a couch used for dining). However, it could also have had a funerary purpose as part of a mausoleum, pantheon, or tomb of a family with a high social status. It may also have been used as the lid for a funerary urn. It is fairly certain that the figure does not represent any type of deity, or even a nymph or any other mythological or allegorical female incarnation. It could be based on a specific person, which would make it a portrait.