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Roman

Strigil, 1st century CE-3rd century CE

Now On View

Description

Maker

  • Unknown

Culture

Roman

Title

Strigil

Year

1st century CE-3rd century CE

Medium

Bronze

Materials/Techniques

Materials

  • bronze

Techniques

  • lost-wax process

Dimensions

22 x 2.8 x 8 cm (8 11/16 x 1 1/8 x 3 1/8 inches) (maximum of blade; of concavity of blade)

Type

  • Metalwork

Credit

Gift of Mrs. Gustav Radeke

Object Number

15.142

Projects & Publications

Publications

Teaching Notes / Think Like an Archaeologist

Read Online

Classical Bronzes

Exhibition History

Exhibition History

Ancient Greek and Roman Galleries

To cleanse the skin, ancient Romans applied perfumed oil and then scraped it away using a small, curved metal tool known as a strigil. This bronze strigil was most likely cast by the solid lost-wax method and hammered. In order to form the rounded blade, the cast piece would have been carefully flattened using various techniques. As this strigil was hammered it would have been annealed, or heated evenly and then cooled in order to reshape and restore the metal and prevent it from becoming too brittle. Although the surface was once a warm brown color, prolonged exposure to oxygen and mineral-rich environments has caused extensive yellowish corrosion and a dark, mottled-green patina.

Use

The images on this website can enable discovery and collaboration and support new scholarship, and we encourage their use. This object is in the public domain (CC0 1.0). This object is Strigil with the accession number of 15.142. To request high-resolution files or new photography, please send an email to imagerequest@risd.edu and include your name and the object's accession number.

Feedback

We view our online collection as a living documents, and our records are frequently revised and enhanced. If you have additional information or have spotted an error, please send feedback to curatorial@risd.edu.

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