Marble Stele of Phainippe in the Metropolitan Museum of Art, Sept. 2007

Marble stele (grave marker) of Phainippe
Greek, Attic, ca. 400-390 BC

Accession # 53.11.7

An inscription identifies the deceased as Phainippe. She holds a mirror in her left hand while the servant girl before her carries a casket and a small box. The servant's dress with sleeves but no belt, reflects an Eastern style that places her origins in Thrace or Asia Minor. The ingredients of this scene are the same as those on many classical vases showing women at home. It is the tomb monument and the sober tone that give the established domestic iconography its special significance.

Text from the Metropolitan Museum of Art label.