Antiquity market trends in Cycladic figurines, 2000–19: Studies in price, prevalence, and provenance

Abstract While the illicit trade in Cycladic figurines is a well-known phenomenon, and the escalatory impact of auction sales upon the looting of Cycladic deposits is widely accepted, there has been to date no systematic study of commercial transactions in Cycladic figurines. This study addresses this gap by performing a quantitative market analysis of auction house sales in Cycladic figurines between 2000 and 2019, examining the frequency with which they appear on the market, fluctuations in their price, and the nature of their provenance. In doing so, it sets out a methodology for navigating the ambiguous nature of antiquity market data, which can often give the misleading impression of a reforming market if the latent commercial contexts are not considered. Overall, a comprehensive insight is gained into the present state of the antiquities market in Cycladic figurines. This insight contributes much needed empirical data on the illicit antiquities trade and offers a new interpretative methodology that can be incorporated in future studies that seek to understand the true nature of antiquity market data.