Funerary Stele of a Woman in the Boston Museum of Fine Arts, October 2009

Funerary Stele of a Woman
Greek, late Classical or early Hellenistic period
About 325-320 BC
Marble

# 1979.510

A standing maid presents her mistress with a small chest, presumably a jewelry box. The women's costumes suggest their different social positions: the maid pulls her hair back in a cloth and wears a simple, long-sleeved garment appropriate for physical work; the mistress wears a thin dress tied above her waist. She has a thicker cloak draped over her shoulder, and her hair is arranged in waves with a curl of braids on the back of her head. Between these two figures, the draped right shoulder and unclothed breast of a man hint at the presence of the husband or father of the seated woman.

Text from the MFA label.