Apollo the archer on his pedestal. The god is depicted naked, walking with his right leg forward. His left leg, slightly bent backwards, must have been resting on the ball of his foot.
The deity’s hair is plaited and gathered at the nape of his neck, with the exception of longer braids that fall over his shoulders. He wears a laurel wreath. A harness crosses his chest and holds a quiver in place behind his back.
His arms are slightly bent away from his body. In his right hand, Apollo is holding a patera, and in his left, a silver spray.
The use of silver for this attribute raises questions among archaeologists: was it a desire to enhance the bouquet or was it an ancient repair?
This statuette, probably from a Thracian workshop (south-east of the Balkans), is associated with two other statuettes from the same laraire (domestic altar).
Learn more:
- Cramatte, C., “Trois statuettes en bronze provenant de Nyon : un nouvel aspect de la vie religieuse dans la Colonia Iulia Equestris“, Annuaire d’Archéologie Suisse, Société suisse de préhistoire et d’archéologie, Bâle, 2009, vol. 92, p. 257-258, fig. 2, pl. 1.
