The Bowmore Artemis

Diana, the Roman goddess of wild animals and the hunt, pursues her quarry, with the swirling folds of her draped tunic, or chiton, attesting to her dynamism. Her now-missing right arm was originally raised to pull an arrow from her quiver, while her left hand was outstretched, grasping the head of a deer rearing on its back legs.

The huntress came to be identified with the Greek goddess Artemis, and this Roman replica in white marble is part of a small group of works associated with the celebrated Athenian sculptors Leochares (active c.370–320 BCE) and Praxiteles (active c.375–330 BCE). An outstanding replicaof this type, the Diana of Versailles, can be found in the collection of the Louvre, Paris.

As well as being Apollo’s twin sister, Diana was a fertility deity, called upon by Roman women hoping to conceive and safely deliver. She was also said to protect the lower classes, especially slaves.

Tony Magnusson, Curator of European Art, 2016–18