The excavations of the Artemision at Thasos, conducted under the aegis of the French School of Athens over the second half of the 20th century yielded abundant archaeological remains, among which nearly 25 000 fragments of figurative terracotta. This ensemble, without being really exceptional, nevertheless appears to be one of the most important discoveries of its kind in a Greek sanctuary. The huge quantity of fragments necessitated specific methods that this paper proposes to explain, taking as an example the set of Archaic terracotta figurines.

As these methods are based on the main process used for making the figurines, i.e. the moulding process, which itself entails secondary moulding, we shall first briefly recapitulate the different stages of the process of manufacture with the use of moulds, and then explain the principles of the methods we ourselves use. The third and final part will deal with the analysis of the more exhaustive typological repertory these methods generated.

Traduction : Margaret & Jean-louis CADOUX