Skip to main content

Grecian Sphinx: MAR.C.8-1912

An image of Animal figure
View image details Mirador icon - view image Mirador deep zoom IIIF Manifest IIIF Manifest Slow looking

Terms of use

The low-resolution images published on this Website are made available under a Creative Commons Attribution licence (CC BY-NC-ND). For more details: Fitzwilliam Terms of Use

This licence does not include any images of works that are still in copyright. Artistic copyright extends from the life of the artist to 70 years from the end of the calendar year in which the artist died.

Download this image

For further information on use of images or to license a high resolution version, please contact our image library who can discuss terms and fees.

Alternative views

An image of Animal figure
An image of Animal figure
An image of Animal figure
An image of Animal figure
An image of Animal figure
View all 22 images attached
Current Location: In storage

Titles

Grecian Sphinx

Maker(s)

Factory: Wedgwood
Designer: Adam, Robert (After)

Entities

Categories

Description

Black basalt, moulded. The sphinx crouches on a rectangular pedestal, with its forepaws extended at the front, and its tail curled over its hind quarters. It wears a semi-circular headdress, a bodice, and a saddle blanket, which falls down onto the base. Underneath there is a large circular hole surrounded by four small holes, with a medium-sized hole to the right.

Notes

History note: Unknown before testator

Legal notes

C.B. Marlay Bequest

Measurements and weight

Height: 23 cm
Length: 31.8 cm

Acquisition and important dates

Method of acquisition: Bequeathed (1912) by Marlay, Charles Brinsley

Dating

Neoclassical
After 1800 CE - Before 1900 CE

Note

Wedgwood's sphinxes were modelled during the autumn of 1769 (see Wedgwood MS E.25 18289), and both the Egyptian and Grecian types were listed in the 1773 Wedgwood & Bentley Catalogue, the latter in two sizes, of which this is the larger size. They are also mentioned in the 1779 Wedgwood & Bentley Catalogue. See Documentation.

School or Style

Neoclassical

Materials used in production

Black basalt

Techniques used in production

Moulding : Black basalt, moulded

Inscription or legends present

  • Text: WEDGWOOD
  • Location: On the underside
  • Method of creation: Impressed
  • Type: Mark

Inscription present: in brown

  • Text: 461
  • Location: On the underside
  • Method of creation: Inscribed
  • Text: 16/
  • Location: On one long side of the pedestal
  • Method of creation: Inscribed

References and bibliographic entries

Related exhibitions

Identification numbers

Accession number: MAR.C.8-1912
Primary reference Number: 11167

Audit data

Created: Saturday 6 August 2011 Updated: Monday 3 February 2025

Associated departments & institutions

Owner or interested party: The Fitzwilliam Museum
Associated department: Applied Arts

Citation for print

This record can be cited in the Harvard Bibliographic style using the text below:

The Fitzwilliam Museum (2025) "Grecian Sphinx" Web page available at: https://data.fitzmuseum.cam.ac.uk/id/object/11167 Accessed: 2025-12-05 11:34:34

Citation for Wikipedia

To cite this record on Wikipedia you can use this code snippet:

{{cite web|url=https://data.fitzmuseum.cam.ac.uk/id/object/11167 |title=Grecian Sphinx |author=The Fitzwilliam Museum|accessdate=2025-12-05 11:34:34|publisher=The University of Cambridge}}

API call for this record

To call these data via our API (remember this needs to be authenticated) you can use this code snippet:

https://data.fitzmuseum.cam.ac.uk/api/v1/objects/object-11167

Bootstrap HTML code for reuse

To use this as a simple code embed, copy this string:

<div class="text-center">
    <figure class="figure">
        <img src="https://data.fitzmuseum.cam.ac.uk/imagestore/aa/aa37/MAR_C_8_1912_1_201708_sjc288_dc2.jpg"
        alt="Grecian Sphinx"
        class="img-fluid" />
        <figcaption class="figure-caption text-info">Grecian Sphinx</figcaption>
    </figure>
</div>

Sign up for updates

Updates about future exhibitions and displays, family activities, virtual events & news. You'll be the first to know...

University of Cambridge Museums logo
Cambridge City Council logo
Arts Council England Logo
Research England logo