The makers of these charming figures, known as κοροπάσται or κοροπλάθοι, were, like the vase-painters, quite in a subordinate position in the artistic world, and are spoken of with some contempt by Isokrates, as if it would be absurd to compare them with a Pheidias or a Zeuxis.[397] A fable of Aesop’s[398] represents Hermes being offered a statue of Zeus for a drachma and one of himself for a mere song; the low price seems to suggest that they were of terracotta, but the vendor is called an ἀγαλματοποιός, not a κοροπλάθος. Demosthenes[399] condemns the Athenians for voting for figure-head generals like makers of toys for the market; and in further illustration of the uses to which they were put, we may cite the definition of Suidas, of “those who fashion little images out of clay of all kinds of creatures, with which to trick children”; and the remark of Dio Chrysostom, who speaks of those who buy the “maiden” figures for their children. A pretty epigram in the _Anthology_[400] tells how Timareta, when about to marry, dedicated to Artemis the playthings of her childhood, including her terracotta dolls (κόρας). Lastly, Plato speaks of κόραι and images hung up in shrines.[401] The processes employed in the manufacture of terracotta statuettes were five in number: (1) the preparation of the clay; (2) moulding; (3) retouching; (4) baking; and (5) colouring and gilding. It does not follow that all five were employed in the production of any one object; on the other hand, all processes necessary to the completion of any one object fall under one or other of these heads. There were many varieties of clay in use among the Greeks, some being considered more suitable for one purpose, some for another. These clays vary in their characteristics in different parts of the Greek world, and this may often be an important criterion for distinguishing fabrics and detecting instances of importation. The clay of Cyprus differs much from that of Rhodes, and that of Naukratis again from either, being of a dark, coarse, and brick-like consistency. M. Pottier noted nine varieties of clay in use at Myrina in Asia Minor, and M. Martha distinguishes five in the terracottas of Athens. But these differences may be explained by variations in the length or temperature of the firing rather than in the clay. Generally speaking, the clay of the terracottas is softer and more porous than that of the vases. It is easily scratched or marked, and does not ring a clear sound when struck; nor does it when submitted to a high temperature become so hard as the pottery.[402] Its colour ranges from deep red to a pale buff colour, and its texture and density vary greatly in different localities. It was prepared by being washed free of all granular substances, and then kneaded with the aid of water. So, as we read in Hesiod’s account of the creation of Pandora,[403] the god directed the mixing of clay and water, in order to form his new creation.