How a Greek goddess of grain connects ancient currency to modern Japanese cinema
In short: The name Kore, famously borne by the acclaimed Japanese director Hirokazu Kore-eda, echoes through history. From ancient silver coins minted in Metapontum to the bronze sculptures of Jean Arp, the figure of Kore represents a bridge between the agricultural abundance of antiquity and the evolving landscape of contemporary global storytelling.
In the ancient world, the goddess Kore was a powerful symbol of agricultural prosperity. Silver staters minted in Metapontum between 330 and 300 BCE featured her image, crowned with grain, to signal the city-state's wealth to trading partners. These coins served as a visual language for an illiterate populace, using mythological figures to communicate the origins of a community's power. This tradition of using iconic imagery to define identity persists in modern art, as seen in the 1958 bronze sculpture Torso-Kore by Jean Arp, which reinterprets the classical form through a twentieth-century lens.
Hirokazu Kore-eda, born in 1962, has built a career that similarly explores the foundations of identity and family. His path to filmmaking began with television documentaries, including his 1991 debut Lessons from a Calf and his 1994 work August without Him, which chronicled the life and activism of Hirata Yutaka. These early experiences in non-fiction storytelling informed his transition to feature films like Maborosi in 1995, which earned the Golden Osella for Best Cinematography at the Venice International Film Festival.
Kore-eda’s work has consistently garnered international recognition, culminating in the Palme d'Or for his 2018 film Shoplifters. His filmography reflects a diverse range of subjects, from the domestic dramas like Still Walking to his international projects such as the South Korean production Broker and his first European-shot film, The Truth. By the time he premiered his science fiction work Sheep in the Box at the 2026 Cannes Film Festival, Kore-eda had established himself as a director whose narratives, much like the ancient coins of Metapontum, carry a distinct and recognizable signature across global borders.
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Sources
- Summary by Intellect · source: Stater (Coin) Depicting the Goddess Kore
- Also: Hirokazu Kore-eda
- Also: Torso-Kore
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