Terracotta sculptuur van het hoofd van Medusa met vleugels en een terracotta vaas met het gezicht van Medusa before 1857

This is Marcel Gustave Laverdet’s photographic depiction of two terracotta objects: a sculpture of Medusa’s head with wings, and a vase bearing her face. Laverdet uses a stark contrast between the objects and a dark backdrop. The eye is immediately drawn to the textured surfaces of the terracotta, emphasized through the play of light and shadow. The composition is vertically oriented, leading the eye from the winged head down to the vase below, creating a visual dialogue between the two representations of Medusa. The rough materiality of the terracotta, captured in the photograph, speaks to the themes of ancient myth. The objects, frozen in Laverdet’s frame, invite reflection on the enduring power and symbolic potency of Medusa.