Cypriot limestone head of a kouros

Cypriot, 5th century BC
Height: 18.5 cm 
 
Provenance: From Kition (Larnaca), excavated by Dozon between 1879 and 1881; Collection of Louis Auguste Dozon (1822-1890), and thence by descent (see correspondence between Auguste Dozon's granddaughter and André Parrot, Director of the Louvre, July 1957)
 
The finely modelled head with intricate detailing of hair and wreath, serpentine curls below a crown of leaves and berries. The youth gazes out at us from almond shaped eyes beneath arched brows, the corners of his mouth raised in an enigmatic smile. Traces of blue, black and red polychromy survive.
 
Auguste Dozon (22 August 1822- 31 December 1890) was a French scholar and diplomat, known for his work on Albanian language and folklore. Born in Chalons Sur Marne on 22 August 1822 he studied ancient and modern literature in Collège Sainte Barbe in Paris. After graduating as a lawyer, he worked in the French Ministry of Interior and then transferred into Foreign Services. Between 1854 and 1885 he was French consul in many cities in the Western Balkans, namely in Belgrade, Mostar, Plovdiv, Ioannina, and Thessaloniki.
 
Condition: Very good. Small areas of damage to nose and chin, the surface with some superficial scratches
 
Literature: A head of a young man with broader face but with very similar treatment of the hair and wearing a comparable wreath is part of the Cesnola Collection now housed in the Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York (acc.no. 74.51.2826).