Hellenistic Alexandria:
The Study of Medicine and Its Tie to the ‘Grotesque’ Figurine
Heather Bowyer, Arizona State University
9:45-10:15
Abstract
This presentation will divide its time between discussing the study of medicine in Alexandria during the
Hellenistic period, 331 until 31 BCE, and the grotesque’s role within this scientific exploration. Scholarly
analysis of the body and its function will be the foundation for the proposal. An increased interest in the body
and its function by an educated public in cities such as Alexandria included topics such as types of deformity.
The academic interest in the dysmorphic body developed during this period and parallels the artistic production
of statuettes with physical abnormalities which became increasingly popular. These statuettes were made of
both bronze and terracotta and created by way of molds and decorated with paint, metal and stone accents. The
choice of bronze and clay allowed for quick and cheaper production which availed these objects to a more
diverse range of clients. This larger market allowed for their purchase not only in Alexandria but in other
Hellenistic cities such as Athens and Smyrna. At the end of the presentation, the question will be posed as to
the possible origins of this interest in grotesques. Was it due to the advanced investigation of the human body,
tied to a Hellenistic societal construct or a combination of both these factors?
Speaker Bio
Heather Bowyer is a third year doctoral candidate at Arizona State University’s Herberger Institute for
Design and the Arts, where she studies the art and archaeology of Greece and Rome. She graduated in 1995
from Indiana University with Bachelor of Arts degrees in History and Secondary Education. She received two
Master of Arts degrees from the University of Kansas one in 2005 in Museum and Historical Administration
and the second, completed in 2006, was in Art History with an emphasis on the ancient art of Greece and Rome.
Since starting her PhD program, she has published her first paper in the Anistoriton Journal of History,
Archaeology and Art History in 2013. Heather is looking forward to continuing her research on issues related
to Hellenistic grotesque sculpture and its production, distribution and function in Hellenistic Egypt, Greece and
the Near East.