Statuette of Heracles
Statuette of young Heracles, who stands upright, with his head turned slightly to his left. The most popular hero of ancient Greece is shown naked and his head is covered by the lion’s pelt, which is tied across his breast in the so called “Heracles knot”, and wrapped around his left arm. He must have probably been leaning on the club he was holding in his right hand. The depiction of the features on the face of the hero is connecting the statuette with the school of the famous sculptor Skopas. Heracles was one of the mythical founders and patrons of athletic games. Statues of him were to be found in Antiquity in gymnasiums, stadiums, and other sports centers.
- National Archaeological Museum, inv. no. NAM Γ 253
- 350 – 325 BC
- H. 0.54 m.
- Pentelic marble
- Provenance: Athens
Bibliography
- Kaltsas, Ν. (2001). Sculpture in the National Archaeological Museum, pp. 264-265, cat. no. 553, Los Angeles: J. Paul Getty Museum.
- Καρούζου, Σ. (1967). Εθνικόν Αρχαιολογικόν Μουσείον. Συλλογή Γλυπτών, Περιγραφικός Κατάλογος, 93, Αθήνα: Γενική Διεύθυνση Αρχαιοτήτων και Αναστηλώσεως.
