Cleveland Museum of Art

Mirror Support: Athlete

Date

460–450 BCE

Medium

bronze

Culture

South Italy, Locri (?), Greek

Department

Greek and Roman Art

Institution

Cleveland Museum of Art

A muscular nude youth strides forward on a square metal plate with his arms outstretched. The plate and the volute decoration that adorns his head suggest that this statuette was the support for a mirror. The youth is likely an athlete, as he holds an alabastron or oil vessel in his right hand. The oil may be an offering to the gods for victory, or to rub onto the skin to protect and beautify his body before an athletic contest. The mirror was made separately and would have been attached to the triangular tang above the athlete’s head. Most Greek mirror stands depict female figures, but this one depicts a male.

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