Corinth Object: S 957
Collection:   Corinth
Type:   Object
Name:   S 957
Title:   SEA MONSTER (KETOS)
Category:   Sculpture
Category Code:   S
Object Number:   957
Description:   Sea monster with ferocious head on curved neck; creature’s face distinguished by detailed carving. Two round knobs project at base of nose flanked by two horn-like projections at right and one or two at left. The two at left are mostly lost, but drillwork outlining them marks their location. The two at right extend forward, the two at left are positioned farther back on head, so both pairs would have been visible. Two round projections also emerge from top of nose. Long jaw opened, teeth bared, tongue extends forward, thickening before it extends from mouth. Strong modeling marks furrowed cheeks, arched eyebrow and round, beady eye. Skin pulled back in comma-shaped patterns above and below mouth. In back, upper and lower parts of jaw smoothed, but middle portion separated from background by a series of channels made by a running drill. Tool marks indicate that the drill was applied from back of jaw toward front. Hence, it would have been possible to carve the ketos if it occurred to the right of a high-relief head. Piece probably attached to one of sections of theater façade, and so it would have projected considerably from the background with monster’s head facing to our left. Working of head much more detailed than snakes of Gigantomachy reliefs. Thus, it probably belongs to pair of high-relief heads, where a sea monster would form an attributive function comparable to dolphins. One of dolphins similarly has a lot of detail, and it projects about 0.167-0.17 from background plane. Ketos projects ca. 0.147 from architectural block. The difference of ca. 0.20 may have been taken up by the drapery or hair from which it emerged. The nearly rectangular shape of the joining surface (ca. 0.04 x 0.06) suggests that the ketos’s neck once was attached to a neck segment that emerged from the figure’s hair or drapery. This ketos may go with the head of the Nereid (or Aphrodite), Corinth IX, iii, p. 85, no. 9. See bust from Aphrodisias that has been recognized as a Nereid, which has one dolphin and two ketoi, Corinth IX, iii, p. 91, note 156, LIMC VI, p. 820, no. 486, s.v. Nereides (Icard-Gianolio, Szabados). With the addition of the ketos, the identification of the Corinth bust as a Nereid is strengthened. Cf. also S-666, Corinth IX, iii, p. 86, no. 10K, which may come from the neck of another sea monster. MS also checked the piece against S-3595, catalogue 10 H, and it doesn’t belong. Head and neck show heavy weathering and water erosion along upper and outer surfaces. A white gash across the mouth probably results from the excavator’s pick.
Mythology:   Nereid
Attributes:   Ketos
Material:   Marble, white, fine grained.
Condition:   Fragment. Two joining fragments, head missing end of upper jaw and tongue, chips from outer sides of lips, tongue, “horns” from top of nose and tips of two horns on upper right of brow; upper left of brow probably had another short horn.
Dimensions Actual:   L. of head 0.128, H. of head 0.034-0.068, Th. of jaw 0.03, Th. of neck 0.059.
Dimensions Preserved:   L. along curved neck 0.295; max. projection from block 0.147.
Period:   2nd c. A.C.
Chronology:   Hadrianic (MS)
Area:   Theater
Context:   Theater
Findspot Description:   Body found in Theater, Tr. 34a, north extension, 1910; head, probably from Theater, found by A. Ajootian stored in tray labeled Shear Basement, coffers and fruit frieze, joined to body and inventoried July 18, 2007, by M. Sturgeon.
Bibliography:   Corinth IX, ii, G 112; Sturgeon 2004, Corinth 9.3, cat. 10J, pp. 86, 87
Site:   Corinth
City:   Ancient Corinth
Country:   Greece
References:   Publication: Sturgeon, Corinth 9:2, 1977
Publication: Sturgeon, Corinth 9:3, 2004
Monument: Theater
Image: bw 1966 007 16