This well-composed ceramic sculpture is a votive figure from the middle of the first millennium BC, and represents a Phoenician deity. The goddess is standing on an integral base (partially restored) and is unusually well-and extensively detailed. The drapery is exceptionally well-rendered and preserved, with a long toga-like garment that reaches to the floor, and is gathered up by the left hand. It overlies a tunic that is visible in the mid-chest. The detailing of the slightly smiling face, the ornate hair-piece that flows into the robe and even the carefully-rendered fingers is exquisite. The general rendering is diagnostically Pre-Classical – rather austere and linear composition, with slightly naïve rendering of facial features – and reflects the archaic style of Greek sculpture that the Phoenicians inspired and with which this piece is contemporary. The piece still retains calcareous accretions (which can be removed if required), which attest to its long interment in the Mediterranean. The back of the piece is almost completely plain, implying that it was always meant to be viewed from the front rather than in the round: this is usual for figures designed for shrines.

Antiquities
Ancient Near East