Statuette of a male figure

During the 5th c. BC, Cyprus developed close political and cultural contact with Greece, which led - among others - to the emulation of Greek models in sculpture. This statuette of a beardless young man holding an olive branch - and probably a bowl on his right hand - betrays clear Greek influences. In style, it resembles votive statuettes from the sanctuary at Golgoi, a site in the south-eastern part of Cyprus. The rather poor sculptural details suggest that such kind of statuettes was mass produced. They were offered to sanctuaries of male deities, such as Adonis, Apollo and the great god in Salamis.