Perspectives d'études coroplathiques : le projet TERRAEGYPT

Résumé En

The study of terracotta figurines made in Antiquity is a field of research growing in importance (now called Coroplastic Studies). The TERRAEGYPT project is more specifically interested in the moulded statuettes made from the 4th century BC to 4th century AD in Egypt. Many museums in France and abroad possess them, but only the prestigious collections have been the subject of catalogues (such as those of the Louvre Museum or the British Museum). French regional collections have been largely neglected, both to specialists and to the general public, even though they offer opportunities for analysis of great importance. They are also precious testimonies of the history of collecting in France. The aim of this project is to propose a global study of the terracottas collections conserved in Auch, Cahors and Toulouse. Several aspects will be explored: the materiality, iconography and typology of these artefacts, the genesis of the collections (collectors, provenance of the statuettes when known, modes of acquisition and art market from the end of the 19th century to the beginning of the 20th century), as well as the evolution of the museological approach.