Statue

A statue is a free-standing sculpture in which the realistic, full-length figures of persons or animals are carved or cast in a durable material such as wood, metal or stone.

A sculpture that represents persons or animals in full figure, but that is small enough to lift and carry is a statuette or figurine, whilst those that are more than twice life-size are regarded as a colossal statues.

For example, many people associate Greek classical art with white marble sculpture, but there is evidence that many statues were painted in bright colors.

[2] A travelling exhibition of 20 coloured replicas of Greek and Roman works, alongside 35 original statues and reliefs, was held in Europe and the United States in 2008: Gods in Color: Painted Sculpture of Classical Antiquity.

[3] Details such as whether the paint was applied in one or two coats, how finely the pigments were ground or exactly which binding medium would have been used in each case—all elements that would affect the appearance of a finished piece—are not known.

The Venus of Berekhat Ram, an anthropomorphic pebble found on the Golan Heights and dated to at least 230,000 years before present, is claimed to be the oldest known statuette.

[6] The Löwenmensch figurine and the Venus of Hohle Fels, both from Germany, are the oldest confirmed statuettes in the world, dating to 35,000-40,000 years ago.

[12] The focal point of the cella or main interior space of a Roman or Greek temple was a statue of the deity it was dedicated to.

While sculpture generally flourished in European Medieval art, the single statue was not one of the most common types, except for figures of the Virgin Mary, usually with Child, and the corpus or body of Christ on crucifixes.

Starting with the work of Maillol around 1900, the human figures embodied in statues began to move away from the various schools of realism that had been followed for thousands of years.