Marble grave stele with a family group

Marble grave stele with a family group
Period: Late Classical
Date: ca. 360 B.C.
Culture: Greek, Attic
Medium: Marble, Pentelic
Dimensions: H. 67 3/8 in. (171.1 cm)
Classification: Stone Sculpture
Credit Line: Rogers Fund, 1911
Accession Number: 11.100.2
This artwork is currently on display in Gallery 156
The Metropolitan Museum of Art
http://www.metmuseum.org/Collections/search-the-collections/248483

Because the framing niche that once surrounded this relief is missing, there are no inscriptions that might identify the deceased. Both the seated man and the veiled woman behind him stare straight ahead, as if the young woman who gazes down at them were invisible. Do they mourn their dead daughter? Does she mourn her dead father, or is she the sole survivor of the group? Despite its ambiguity and solemn sadness, the relief conveys an intense, though restrained, sense of family unity. Carved by a master, this grave stele is one of the most magnificent examples from the classical period.