The Dama de Elche (Woman of Elche or Lady of Elx) is the name of a life-sized stone bust of a woman, carved between the fifth and fourth centuries BC. The statue was discovered by accident in 1897 at the archaeological site of La Alcudia, located in the town of Elche, Spain, on the southeast Iberian peninsula.
The bust measures some 56 centimeters high, and it features the head and shoulders of an elite woman. It was carved from fossiliferous limestone, and it was hollowed out with a large opening in its back. Although most of the coloration has faded with, the statue was originally painted in vivid colors ("polychrome"). Two of the colors with which it was painted have been identified: classic natural vermillion and Egyptian blue. These paints were laid over a base coat of gypsum mixed with calcium carbonate.
Dating the bust has been difficult, because the statue was found accidentally and precise provenience data has been lost. Stylistically, the Dama de Elche appears to match the Classic Iberian period, and, given its recovery in the vicinity of La Alcudia, which was destroyed in fourth century BC, archaeologists have chosen to bracket it within the 5th and 4th centuries. recent studies of microscopic contents of the Dama de Elche have identified it as a cinerary urn, a repository for the ashes of a cremated human being.
The Dama de Elche is currently on display at the National Archaeological Museum of Madrid.
Sources
This glossary entry is a part of the Dictionary of Archaeology.
Luxán MP, Prada JL, Dorrego F, and Dorrego JF. 2011
Human bone ashes found in the Dama de Elche (V-IV century B.C.) reveal its use as an ancient cinerary urn. Journal of Cultural Heritage 12(3):310-316.
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