Female Ivory Figurine
Ritual use
Gravettian
Gravettian
Around 29 000 years
In the Haute-Garonne, Lespugue yielded an ivory figurine, which, along with those from Kostenki, are masterpieces of female figurines.
A. Leroi-Gourhan, Préhistoire de l’art occidental, Mazenod, Paris, 1965
Commentary :
Gravettian sites in southwestern France have yielded mammoth ivory figurines.
The ivory used to make the female figurine from Lespugue, in the Pyrenees, comes from the core of a compact and homogeneous tusk.
The Venus of Lespugue is represented in a way that is both realistic and abstract.
The main volumes of the breasts, belly and buttocks are perfectly integrated into the geometry of such a stylized figure.
This female representation can be considered the masterpiece of a talented Gravettian sculptor who lived 29 000 years ago.
