This replica reproduces the plaster cast of an Archaic Greek kore statue dedicated circa 570–560 BCE by the Samian aristocrat Cheramyes as a votive offering to Hera at the Heraion sanctuary on Samos. The original marble sculpture, carved in local Samian marble in the Samian workshop style, stood approximately 192 cm tall along the Sacred Way leading to the temple. It was excavated in 1875 and entered the collection of the Musée du Louvre in 1881. The plaster cast, produced in the Louvre’s cast atelier in the 19th century and measuring 186 cm in height, is preserved in the Museum of the Academy of Fine Arts in Kraków, Poland.
The replica accurately renders the statue’s current condition: the head is absent, the object once held in the left hand (most probably a bronze temple key) is missing, and surface losses from weathering are present. The figure is shown in a cylindrical, frontal pose wearing a finely pleated linen chiton beneath a heavier himation draped over the right shoulder and across the body. The right hand grasps the edge of the veil; the left hand rests against the chest. An inscription originally ran vertically along the left side of the figure.
Available materials and production methods
– White nylon: Produced by selective laser sintering followed by polishing. The surface is smoothed for improved tactile quality. This is the most economical option.
– Black nylon: Produced by selective laser sintering with a post-printing treatment that confers resistance to scratching, rubbing, and external environmental exposure. The finish provides a uniform colour with batch-to-batch consistency.
– Bronze: Fabricated by lost-wax casting. A wax master model is produced by 3D printing, invested in a plaster mould, and replaced by molten bronze.
– Gold-plated brass: Fabricated by lost-wax casting in brass from a 3D-printed wax master model, followed by gold plating.
– White rhodium-plated brass: Fabricated by lost-wax casting in brass from a 3D-printed wax master model, followed by white rhodium plating.
All metal versions are created by the same lost-wax process: a 3D-printed wax master is embedded in a plaster mould; the wax is removed and replaced by molten metal, yielding a precise metallic replica that retains the surface details of the source model.
Objects exceeding the dimensional capacity of the selected production process are manufactured at a reduced scale relative to the original.
