Archaic Smile
A specific type of facial expression in early Ancient Greek sculpture (7th–6th centuries BC)
Archaic smile — a mysterious half-smile appearing on the faces of statues from the Archaic period of Ancient Greece. It is a special artistic technique that makes the sculptures seem to express spirituality or inner harmony. This technique was characteristic of kouroi and korai — standing statues of young men and women. Historians still debate whether the smile was purely decorative or symbolized joy of life, immortality, or social status.
Amusingly, archaeologists during excavations of new statues in Athens sometimes argued over which of the finds “smiled” wider, leading to real “smile contests” among ancient Greek gods and heroes.
The archaic smile is a kind of signature of the era: if a sculpture looks at you with a mysterious half-smile, you have certainly encountered a true work of Archaic art.