MUSIC · RELIEF OF OSUNA

Auletris of Osuna

The Sound Carved in Stone

The figure plays a double-tubed instrument, although we do not know what music it performed.

Museum documentation · free public access, no account required.

Piece of a frieze carved in limestone, with two women on different faces. — **PHOTOGRAPH OF THE ORIGINAL · Flautist of Osuna · CC BY 2.0**
Documentary original · Exact correspondence
Documentary photograph of the original or the exact site.
Ángel M. Felicísimo from Mérida, Spain · Flautist of Osuna · Inventory: Flautista de Osuna (38201160704) · CC BY 2.0
Source and provenance ↗Terms of use ↗

**PHOTOGRAPH OF THE ORIGINAL · Flautist of Osuna · CC BY 2.0**
Documentary original · Exact correspondence
Documentary photograph of the original or the exact site.
Ángel M. Felicísimo from Mérida, Spain · Flautist of Osuna · Inventory: Flautista de Osuna (38201160704) · CC BY 2.0
Source and provenance ↗Terms of use ↗

History and context

The figure holds a double aulos. The continuous breath and two tubes could produce an intense sound, suitable for public spaces, processions or ceremonies. The instrument entered the Iberian repertoire through Mediterranean contacts and was locally appropriated.

The stone preserves hands, tubes and posture, not the melody. Nor does it allow turning an image into a universal gender norm: this performer demonstrates that a woman could be represented playing, not that the aulos was exclusive to all Iberian women.

Iberian iconography brings together double aulos, trumpets, bells and other instruments in ceremonial, equestrian and funerary scenes. Sound organised collective time: procession, ritualised combat, dance, initiation or farewell.

We do not preserve scores or melodies. An audioguide can reconstruct timbres and gestures with experimental instruments, always indicating that the concrete music belongs to contemporary recreation.

Evidence and interpretation

Documented fact: reliefs and ceramics preserve instruments, performers and visual contexts. Interpretation and caution: repertoire, rhythm and exact function cannot be deduced from an isolated image.

Catalogue facts

Narrative date: 3rd–2nd centuries BCE
Location: Osuna (Seville)
Material: Limestone relief
Context: Music in a Monumental Programme
Classification: Iberian collection or explicit interpretive resource
Visual reference: National Archaeological Museum · Auletrix · visual and provenance reference

A closer look

About 1 min to read · 1 section. Further reading and sources · free access. Editorial review recorded: September 5, 2026.

Not every perforated bone belonged to a musician

Research on the aulos of Azaila reminds us that certain perforated bones from Clunia, formerly considered instruments, were in fact hinges. The distinction depends on manufacture, wear and parallels, not merely the presence of holes. Facing the Osuna relief, this problem teaches how image and object intersect: posture helps recognise a practice, but material remains require their own diagnosis. Sonic reconstruction must rely on correctly identified pieces, while also indicating which parts have been experimentally completed.

Research · R. Jiménez Pasalodos and collaborators · The aulós fragment identified in the National Archaeological Museum and its Mediterranean context, AbantosAccess recorded: September 5, 2026.

Reference images and provenance

You can enlarge the documentary photograph of the piece related to this figure. It is not listed as an input of a generated portrait. The identification of the figure, when discussed, is explained in the file.

Auletris of Osuna · Auletris of Osuna — **Auletris of Osuna**
Documentary photograph of the reference object
This photograph is the registered source of the documentary image currently displayed; it is not presented as an input photograph for another generated portrait.
This photograph is the registered source of the documentary image currently displayed; it is not presented as an input photograph for another generated portrait.
Documentary original · Contextual correspondence
Ángel M. Felicísimo from Mérida, Spain
Image provenance CC BY 2.0

Additional visual documentation

A cited publication does not establish which image was used to create the character.

Where it is held

Museo Arqueológico Nacional (Madrid)

Item or group in the record · Permanent exhibition

Room 13; replaces the historical link of 'piece of the month' as a location reference.

The holding institution is documented; public display may change. Check its official record before visiting.

Sources and references

Expand this information and consult its provenance

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