This elegant terracotta figure, approximately half life-size, is an excellent example of German orientalising sculpture. The Gladenbeck foundry was one of the most important foundries operating in Germany around the turn of the century, working in both monumental bronzes and smaller pieces in bronze and terracotta such as this. This piece, by one of the Gladenbeck sons, Oskar, depicts a young maiden, possibly Indian, dressed in a beautiful green dress looking out into the distance as she takes a moment of pause from carrying a large urn of water. She rests her left hand on the water vessel, and struts her hips out, in a provocatively sensual fashion backwards to the right. Her rich dark hair, adorned with golden jewellery trails down her back, and the folds in the green garment accentuate her feminine curves. The maker has taken excellent advantage of the potential of painted terracotta to create a wonderfully life-like figure. She stands upon a small circular plinth.Â