Ancient India – Northern India

Beautiful and expressive **head of a female terracotta figure**, probably of the **Yakṣī** type, from North India and belonging to the artistic tradition of the Ganges valley during the **Kushan period, 1st–3rd century CE**. The head is created in a **hollow roundel/round-boss relief** and originally belonged to a more complete figure, as indicated by the ancient break at the neck. The face, with full features and strongly modeled, is framed by an elaborately developed coiffure, organized into voluminous masses and rolls. A small **auspicious sign (bindi)** in shallow relief adorns the center of the forehead. The greatly stretched lobes bear heavy ear ornaments, probably of the *kuṇḍala* type, characteristic of the North Indian figurative repertoire during the early centuries of our era. The surface preserves an **ancient pink-red coloration** perfectly integrated, accompanied by deposits and natural alterations. The neck break, the interior cavity and the exterior surfaces show wear and aging that are coherent. No structural collage or major modern restoration has been observed. Identification as a **Yakṣī**, a female auspicious or semi-divine figure associated with the religious traditions of ancient India, is considered probable but remains deliberately cautious due to the absence of the body and its attributes. **Dimensions excluding base:** H. 12 cm × L. 9 cm × P. 7 cm **Weight:** 615.5 g Modern base included. **Provenance:** former Belgian private collection. **Condition:** good relative condition for an archaeological terracotta of this age; fragmentary head with wear, deposits and small ancient losses visible in photographs. **Important – Thermoluminescence:** no thermoluminescence (TL) analysis has been carried out. Attribution, dating and assessment of authenticity rely on physical and macroscopic examination of the work, its manufacturing technique, study of its surfaces and conservation state, and comparison with available archaeological, museological and scientific corpora. TL is a complementary method to evaluate the age of the last firing of the material, but does not, by itself, provide absolute authentication of the object in its current form. video link: https://www.dropbox.com/scl/fo/xzmxi7018ipzy54366951/ANAi1GE3it_kDAK2ozI-Xjk?rlkey=zr0ve7e0ftrkc1rcws0fku3y2&dl=0

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