Eagle, harpy o siren. Sculptural group of Cerrillo Blanco (Porcuna, Jaén, Spain)

Sculptural representation of a being with wings almost totally open. The feathers are carved in the piece, pointing out in an original way the primary coverts between two parallel and wavy bands from where other vertical lines start gently wavy outward. Other vertical long lines emerge from the second band, which bend at the end and point out the feathers of primary shirts. Secondary shirt feathers hang vertically under the body and stick to the base, marking at its beginning the principle of the wings on both sides and at different heights, according to the degree of uplift of each one. Chronology: 440-400 B.C. Dimensions Height = 70 cm Width = 98 cm Maximum thickness = 35 cm Minimum thickness = 12 cm This figure belongs to the sculptural group of Cerrillo Blanco, found in 1975 in the municipality of Porcuna (Jaén). This set constitutes nowadays the most important Iberian sculptural group of the known so far. It is composed of more than forty pieces that represent heroic struggles of men with each other or men with animals, hunting scenes, images of fantastic animals or important characters. Specifically, it belongs to the group called mythological animals formed by figures of isolated mythical animals that do not interact with any of the characters belonging to the sculptural group. These animals would constitute the metaphorical bases of the landscapes expressed in the monument. Therefore the pairs of animals could go at the ends of each step of the front of the tower. In general, five groups are established: First and at the base of the tower, the sphinxes of which there is only one example but of which the turn of the head to the side could justify the existence of a second similar sculpture and with the head in opposite position. Both would protect the monument at its base, marking from the beginning that it is a mythical area, as the lions did in the Pajarillo. The struggles of the wolf with the lamb, of which there is a second fragmented example of two animals one fierce and another meek, would frame the duels. The griffin with a snake that rests its claws on the bracket and the second tap whose action is unknown, because only the head is preserved, would complete the corners of the step of the zoomachias. The harpy or siren and the eagle would frame the mythical Oikos. The last couple formed by the two Hispanic goats around the body of the divinity would close the fifth level, but this figure is included in the group of The Ancestors. Currently the sculptures from Cerrillo Blanco can be visited in the Provincial Museum of Jaén and the archeological site in Porcuna (Jaén) is also visible, since it is one of the stops of the cultural route “Journey to the time of the Iberos” with which it is intended to value the iberas first level traces existing in the province of Jaén. Bibliography: Chapa, T. (2015): “Los escultores del Cerrillo Blanco de Porcuna,” in A. Ruiz y M. Molinos (coord.): Jaén, ibera land. 40 years of research and transfer. University of Jaén. Jaén. Olmos, R. (2002): “The sculptural groups of Cerrillo Blanco de Porcuna (Jaén). A convergent iconographic reading essay.” Spanish Archive of Archaeology, 75 107-122. Ruiz, A. and Molinos, M. (2015): “The sculptural group of Cerrillo Blanco, Porcuna,” in A. Ruiz and M. Molinos (Eds.): Jaén, Iberian land 40 Years of research and transfer. University of Jaén. 67-84. Torrecillas, J. F. (1985): The late period cemetery of Cerrillo Blanco. Institute of Giennenses Studies. Jaén.