Art Institute of Chicago

Bird Head Fragment

Greek; Thessaly

Date

Geometric Period (800–600 BCE)

Medium

Bronze

Culture

Greece

Department

Arts of Greece, Rome, and Byzantium

Institution

Art Institute of Chicago

This precious bronze object is a votive, or devotional gift, made as an offering to the gods. They come in many forms, such as animals, beads and brooches. Many seem once to have been attached to something else. Votives were hung from sacred trees or placed in sanctuaries around Greece. Once a shrine was full, the votives were ceremonially buried to make room for more offerings.

The authoritative record is held by Art Institute of Chicago. LinkedCulture surfaces this object and its connections; it does not alter institutional metadata.