Una statua femminile in pietra da Gela

The subject of this paper is a small stone statue from the Molino a Vento area, acropolis of the ancient city of Gela. It represents a young maiden wearing a peplos and a mantle and holding a wreath with both hands. Through a detailed analysis of the iconographic and stylistic characteristics, this study proposes to date the statue shortly after the mid-sixth century and to attribute it to a local workshop. Furthermore, thanks to the comparison with a very similar small stone statue of unknown provenance in the Caltanissetta Museum, and with a terracotta figurine also coming from the Molino a Vento area, this paper suggests the hypothesis that all three artifacts may have been inspired by a common statuary model. Finally, the research investigates the meaning of the statue and the nature of its provenance context. The artifact probably belongs to a place of worship in which it represented the divine simulacrum or a votive gift perhaps associated with pre-nuptial rites.