Funerary Lion in the Getty Villa, July 2008

Funerary Lion
Greek, made in Athens, about 325 BC
Marble

Originally one of a pair, this lion sat at the corner of a family grave plot in Athens, where it served as both a guardian figure and a symbol of the family's wealth and prestige. The lion turns to face the viewer and would have been crouching in a menacing pose. Greek sculptors from this period had little or no opportunity to observe a lion directly. Its conception would have been based on earlier representations from the ancient Near East, where lions were prevalent, as well as on the close observations of domestic animals in Greece, such as cats and hounds.

Text from the Getty Villa museum label.