Last third of the 4th century. – 1st century BC.
The power of Alexander the Great (356 - 323 BC) collapsed after his death. In the newly formed states, the term “Hellenic” gradually begins to designate not only the Greek conquerors, but also all representatives of the privileged strata of society, regardless of their nationality.
The art of the Hellenistic era is primarily characterized by a combination of Greek and Eastern artistic traditions.
The architecture has not undergone significant changes. Mostly peripters and small temples are being built - forgive me.
Fine arts are receiving new directions of development:
1. Idealizing tradition.
2. Tradition of realistic art.
Cameo Gonzaga. Ptolemy II and Arsinoe. Sardonyx. Hermitage Museum. Idealized images.
Along with the image of idealized beauty, the traditions of Lysippos are being developed - a realistic image of a living person.
Very accurately reveals the image of the famous speaker and statesman.
Alexandria
In addition to cult sculpture, decorative sculpture, palace and park sculpture, for decorating palaces and private houses, became widespread in Alexandria.One of the favorite images was the image of Aphrodite.
The goddess remains beautiful as before, but loses the majesty of an Olympian deity.
Con. 3 – beginning 2nd century BC 16 little ones - 16 cubits of rising water.
In the realistic direction, images appeared in the everyday genre.
Con. 3 – beginning 2nd century BC
Even types with physical disabilities were depicted - hunchbacked dwarfs.
Bronze. 2nd century BC.
Pergamon
Pergamon (Pergamon)- an ancient city on the coast of Asia Minor, the former center of an influential state.
The leading traditions of the Pergamon art school were the traditions of realism. Two monuments are dedicated to repelling the invasion of the barbarian Gauls.
“Gifts of Attalus” are bronze sculptural groups created by order of Attalus I (king of Pergamon 241 BC - 197 BC) in memory of his victory over the barbarian Gauls (Galatians). Master Epigonus (court sculptor), Pyromachus, Stratinnik and Antigonus. They stood on the Pergamon Acropolis next to the sanctuary of Athena Nikephora, and their repetitions were exhibited on the southern side of the Athenian Acropolis as a gift to the gods for victory. These “Gifts of Attalus” depicted scenes of Gigantomachy, Amazonomachy, and the battle of the Greeks with the Persians and Gauls. Some of these figures have come down to us in Roman copies. 
Gifts of Attalus. Group "Gaul, who killed his wife and kills himself." Roman marble copy of a lost bronze original from 230 BC. e. Rome. Thermal Museum.
Dramatic. He turned around, triumphant that he was dying free. the image of the Gaul is full of heroic pathos, enhanced by the contrast of his powerful figure with the helplessly falling body of his wife. The group is built on complex angles of the figures, the extreme tension of the warrior is emphasized by an almost supernatural turn of the head.
Dying Gall. Gifts of Attalus. Roman copy of a bronze original.
Death, dying, the last breath are developed with amazing force, even with naturalism. Another feature: the sculpture accurately conveys the Gaul ethnic type.
"The Dying Gaul".
In terms of naturalism and drama, the sculpture belongs to the peaks of ancient art. Gall is depicted lying on a shield, naked except for a hoop around his neck. Like the Ludovisi throne, the statue was probably discovered during the construction of their villa in Rome and was kept in the Palazzo Ludovisi on Pincio until its acquisition by Pope Clement XII.
During the Napoleonic Wars, The Dying Gaul was taken by the French from Italy and was exhibited in the Louvre for a number of years.
It is a memorial monument erected in the 2nd century. BC(?) in honor of the victory won by the Pergamon king over the barbarian Gauls (Galatians).
It is traditionally believed that the altar was dedicated to Zeus, among other versions - the dedication to the “twelve Olympians”, King Eumenes II, Athena, Athena together with Zeus.
In the 19th century was discovered by German archaeologists and transported to Germany.
In the Berlin Pergamon Museum, built in 1910 - 1930. specifically for this purpose, a model-reconstruction of the altar is exhibited, on which the surviving elements of sculptural decor are placed.
This building is not a copy of the ancient altar - only the main, western side has been recreated. The frieze slabs of the other sides of the altar are placed in the same hall near the walls.
The innovation of the creators of the Pergamon Altar was that the altar - a sacred place - was moved outside the temple and turned into an independent architectural structure.
It was erected on a special terrace on the southern slope of the mountain of the acropolis of Pergamum, below the sanctuary of Athena. The altar was visible from all sides.
The altar was a high plinth raised on a stepped foundation. On one side the base was cut through by a wide open marble staircase, 20 m wide, leading to the upper platform of the altar. The upper tier was surrounded by Ionic columns. Inside the colonnade there was an altar courtyard where the altar itself was located (3-4 m high).
The famous Great Frieze (2.3 m high and 120 m long) stretched along the perimeter of the base as a continuous ribbon.
The main theme of the relief images is the battle of the Olympian gods with the giants.
Most likely, in ancient times the altar was considered a masterpiece, since the Roman writer of the 2nd-3rd centuries. Lucius Ampelius ranks it among the wonders of the world. He briefly mentions the altar of Zeus in his essay “On the Wonders of the World”: “In Pergamon there is a large marble altar, 40 steps high, with large sculptures depicting the Gigantomachy.”
The ancient Greek writer and geographer of the 2nd century, the author of a kind of ancient guidebook “Description of Hellas,” Pausanias mentions the Pergamon Altar, comparing the traditions of sacrifice at Olympia.
In the New Testament, in the second chapter of the Revelation of John the Theologian: “And write to the Angel of the Church of Pergamon: ... you live where the throne of Satan is.” There is an opinion that these words of John the Theologian refer to the altar of Zeus, but commentators of Revelation usually associate these words with the cult of Aesculapius, in whose temple in Pergamum a living serpent was kept.
In the 19th century The Turkish government invited German specialists to build roads: engineer Karl Humann was involved in the work in Asia Minor. He discovered that Pergamon had not yet been fully excavated, although the finds could be of extreme value. Humann had to use all his influence to prevent the destruction of some of the exposed marble ruins in the lime-gas kilns.
“When we climbed, seven huge eagles soared over the acropolis, foreshadowing happiness. We dug up and cleared the first slab. It was a mighty giant on serpentine, writhing legs, his muscular back turned towards us, his head turned to the left, with a lion's skin on his left hand... They turn over another slab: the giant falls with his back on the rock, lightning pierced his thigh - I feel your closeness, Zeus! I run feverishly all four plates. I see the third approaching the first: the snake ring of a large giant clearly passes onto the slab with a giant fallen to his knees... I positively tremble all over my body. Here's another piece - I scrape off the soil with my nails - this is Zeus! The great and wonderful monument was presented to the world again, all our works were crowned, Athena’s group received the most beautiful pandan (an object paired with another)... We, three happy people, stood deeply shocked around the precious find, until I sat down on the slab and relieved my soul big tears of joy.
Karl Humann. Pergamon Altar.
Reliefs of the Pergamon Altar
- one of the best examples of Hellenistic art.Style characteristics
The main feature of this sculpture is its extreme energy and expressiveness.
“In the Pergamon frieze, one of the essential aspects of Hellenistic art was most fully reflected - the special grandeur of the images, their superhuman strength, exaggeration of emotions, violent dynamics”.
The masters abandoned the tranquility of the classics for the sake of these qualities.
“Although battles and fights were a frequent theme in ancient reliefs, they have never been depicted as on the Pergamon Altar - with such a shuddering feeling of a cataclysm, a battle for life and death, where all cosmic forces, all the demons of the earth participate and sky".
"": Zeus is fighting three opponents at the same time. Having struck one of them, he prepares to throw his lightning at the leader of the enemies - the snake-headed giant Porphyrion.
"": the goddess with a shield in her hands threw the winged giant Alcyoneus to the ground. The winged goddess of victory Nike rushes towards her to crown her head with a laurel wreath. The giant tries unsuccessfully to free himself from the goddess's hand. Athena grabbed the huge winged giant Alcyoneus by the hair and easily tears him away from mother earth Gaia. The faces of the giant and Gaia are full of physical and mental anguish.
The frieze of the Pergamon Altar influenced later ancient works. For example, the Laocoon group, which, as Bernard Andre proved, was created twenty years later than the Pergamon high relief. The authors of the sculptural group worked directly in the tradition of the creators of the altar frieze and may even have participated in the work on it.
Marble. Beginning 3rd century BC. Permeated with a mood of hopeless despair and horror. Very fractional, in young men the proportions of adults are signs of the decline of art.
Laocoon (Laocoon)- in Greek mythology, a priest of Apollo in Troy. He took a wife against the will of Apollo and fathered children; according to Euphorion, Apollo was angry with him because he married his wife in front of his statue.
Laocoon is a soothsayer who warned his fellow citizens not to introduce the Trojan Horse into the city. Apollo sent two snakes that swam across the sea and swallowed Laocoon's sons Antiphantus and Fimbrey, and then strangled Laocoon himself. According to another story, this happened because of the anger of Athena, and the snakes took refuge under the shield at the feet of the statue of Athena (or the snakes sailed from the islands of Kalidna and turned into people). The Trojans decided that this had happened because Laocoon threw a spear at the Trojan horse. According to Arctinus, snakes killed Laocoont and one of his sons. According to one version of the myth, only his children were strangled by snakes. He himself remained alive to mourn his fate forever.
2nd century BC. White marble. It is believed that its creator was the sculptor Agesander or Alexandros of Antioch (the inscription is illegible).
The sculpture is a type of Aphrodite of Cnidus (Bashful Venus): a goddess holding a fallen robe with her hand (the first sculpture of this type was sculpted by Praxiteles, c. 350 BC). Proportions - 86x69x93 with a height of 164cm.
It was found in 1820 on the island. Melos (Milos) in Southern Greece, one of the Cyclades islands of the Aegean Sea by peasant Yorgos Kentrotas while working in the soil. Her hands were lost after the discovery, during a conflict between the French, who wanted to take her to their country, and the Turks (owners of the island), who had the same intention. The database with the author's signature is also lost.
3rd century BC. It stood in the form of a victory monument on the island. Samothrace. It seems to take off from a pedestal shaped like the bow of a ship.
Mosaic from the House of the Faun in Pompeii. Roman copy of the lost Greek painting by Philoxenus, “The Battle of Alexander and Darius.” Beginning of the 3rd century. BCd
There are many historical facts relating to Greek Statues (which we will not go into in depth in this collection). However, you don't need to have a degree in history to admire the incredible craftsmanship of these magnificent sculptures. Truly timeless works of art, these 25 most legendary Greek statues are masterpieces of varying proportions.
Athlete from Fano
Known by the Italian name The Athlete of Fano, Victorious Youth is a Greek bronze sculpture that was found in the Fano Sea on the Adriatic coast of Italy. The Fano Athlete was built between 300 and 100 BC and is currently among the collections of the J. Paul Getty Museum in California. Historians believe that the statue was once part of a group of sculptures of victorious athletes at Olympia and Delphi. Italy still wants the sculpture back and disputes its removal from Italy.
Poseidon from Cape Artemision
An ancient Greek sculpture that was found and restored near the sea of Cape Artemision. The bronze Artemision is believed to represent either Zeus or Poseidon. There is still debate about this sculpture because its missing lightning strikes rule out the possibility that it is Zeus, while its missing trident also rules out the possibility that it is Poseidon. Sculpture has always been associated with the ancient sculptors Myron and Onatas.
Zeus statue in Olympia
The statue of Zeus at Olympia is a 13-meter statue, with a giant figure sitting on a throne. This sculpture was created by a Greek sculptor named Phidias and is currently located in the Temple of Zeus in Olympia, Greece. The statue is made of ivory and wood and depicts the Greek god Zeus seated on a cedar throne decorated with gold, ebony and other precious stones. 
Athena Parthenon
Athena of the Parthenon is a giant gold and ivory statue of the Greek goddess Athena, discovered at the Parthenon in Athens. Made from silver, ivory and gold, it was created by the famous ancient Greek sculptor Phidias and is considered today as the most famous cult symbol of Athens. The sculpture was destroyed by a fire that took place in 165 BC, but was restored and placed in the Parthenon in the 5th century. 
Lady from Auxerre
The 75 cm Lady of Auxerre is a Cretan sculpture currently housed in the Louvre in Paris. She depicts the archaic Greek goddess during the 6th century, Persephone. A curator from the Louvre named Maxime Collignon found the mini-statue in the vault of the Auxerre Museum in 1907. Historians believe that the sculpture was created during the 7th century during the Greek transition period. 
Antinous Mondragon
The 0.95 meter tall marble statue depicts the god Antinous among a massive group of cult statues built to worship Antinous as a Greek god. When the sculpture was found in Frascati during the 17th century, it was identified because of its striped eyebrows, serious expression, and downward gaze. This creation was purchased in 1807 for Napoleon and is currently on display in the Louvre. 
Apollo of Strangford
An ancient Greek sculpture made of marble, the Strangford Apollo was built between 500 and 490 BC and was created in honor of the Greek god Apollo. It was discovered on the island of Anafi and named after the diplomat Percy Smith, 6th Viscount Strangford and the real owner of the statue. Apollo is currently housed in Room 15 of the British Museum. 
Kroisos from Anavysos
Discovered in Attica, Kroisos of Anavysos is a marble kouros that once served as a funerary statue for Kroisos, a young and noble Greek warrior. The statue is famous for its archaic smile. 1.95 meters tall, Kroisos is a free-standing sculpture that was built between 540 and 515 BC and is currently on display at the National Archaeological Museum of Athens. The inscription under the statue reads: “Stop and mourn at the tomb of Kroisos, who was killed by the furious Ares when he was in the front ranks.” 
Biton and Kleobis
Created by the Greek sculptor Polymidis, Biton and Kleobis are a pair of archaic Greek statues created by the Argives in 580 BC to worship two brothers related by Solon in a legend called the Histories. The statue is now in the Archaeological Museum of Delphi, Greece. Originally built in Argos, Peloponnese, a pair of statues were found at Delphi with inscriptions on the base identifying them as Kleobis and Biton. 
Hermes with baby Dionysus
Created in honor of the Greek god Hermes, Praxiteles' Hermes represents Hermes carrying another popular character in Greek mythology, the infant Dionysus. The statue was made from Parian marble. According to historians, it was built by the ancient Greeks during 330 BC. It is known today as one of the most original masterpieces of the great Greek sculptor Praxiteles and is currently housed in the Archaeological Museum of Olympia, Greece. 
Alexander the Great
A statue of Alexander the Great was discovered in the Palace of Pella in Greece. Coated and made of marble, the statue was built in 280 BC to honor Alexander the Great, a popular Greek hero who rose to fame across several parts of the world and fought battles against the Persian armies, notably at Granisus, Issui and Gagamela. The statue of Alexander the Great is now on display among the Greek art collections of the Archaeological Museum of Pella in Greece. 
Kora in Peplos
Restored from the Acropolis of Athens, the Kore at Peplos is a stylized image of the Greek goddess Athena. Historians believe that the statue was created to serve as a votive offering during ancient times. Made during the Archaic period of Greek art history, Kora is characterized by the rigid and formal pose of Athena, her majestic curls and archaic smile. The statue originally appeared in a variety of colors, but only traces of its original colors can be observed today. 
Ephebe from Antikythera
Made of fine bronze, the Ephebe of Antikythera is a statue of a young man, god or hero, holding a spherical object in his right hand. A work of Peloponnesian bronze sculpture, this statue was recovered from a shipwreck near the island of Antikythera. It is believed to be one of the works of the famous sculptor Efranor. The ephebe is currently on display at the National Archaeological Museum of Athens. 
Delphic Charioteer
Better known as Heniokos, the Charioteer of Delphi is one of the most popular statues that survived ancient Greece. This life-size bronze statue depicts a chariot driver that was restored in 1896 at the Sanctuary of Apollo at Delphi. Here it was originally erected during the 4th century to commemorate the victory of a chariot team in ancient sports. Originally part of a massive group of sculptures, the Delphic Charioteer is now displayed in the Archaeological Museum of Delphi. 
Harmodius and Aristogeiton
Harmodius and Aristogeiton were created after the establishment of democracy in Greece. Created by the Greek sculptor Antenor, the statues were made of bronze. These were the first statues in Greece to be paid for with public funds. The purpose of the creation was to honor both men, whom the ancient Athenians accepted as outstanding symbols of democracy. The original installation site was Kerameikos in 509 AD, along with other heroes of Greece. 
Aphrodite of Knidos
Known as one of the most popular statues created by the ancient Greek sculptor Praxiteles, Aphrodite of Knidos was the first life-size representation of a naked Aphrodite. Praxiteles built the statue after he was commissioned by Cos to create a statue depicting the beautiful goddess Aphrodite. In addition to its status as a cult image, the masterpiece has become a landmark in Greece. Its original copy did not survive the massive fire that once took place in Ancient Greece, but its replica is currently on display in the British Museum. 
Winged Victory of Samothrace
Created in 200 BC. The Winged Victory of Samothrace, depicting the Greek goddess Nike, is considered today as the greatest masterpiece of Hellenistic sculpture. It is currently displayed in the Louvre among the most famous original statues in the world. It was created between 200 and 190 BC, not to honor the Greek goddess Nike, but in honor of a naval battle. Winged Victory was established by the Macedonian general Demetrius, after his naval victory in Cyprus. 
Statue of Leonidas I at Thermopylae
The statue of Spartan King Leonidas I at Thermopylae was erected in 1955, in memory of the heroic King Leonidas, who distinguished himself during the Battle of the Persians in 480 BC. A sign was placed under the statue that reads: “Come and Take It.” This is what Leonidas said when King Xerxes and his army asked them to lay down their weapons. 
Wounded Achilles
The wounded Achilles is a depiction of the hero of the Iliad named Achilles. This ancient Greek masterpiece conveys his agony before death, being wounded by a fatal arrow. Made from alabaster stone, the original statue is currently housed in the Achilleion residence of Queen Elizabeth of Austria in Kofu, Greece. 
Dying Gaul
Also known as the Death of Galatian, or the Dying Gladiator, the Dying Gaul is an ancient Hellenistic sculpture that was created between 230 BC. and 220 BC for Attalus I of Pergamon to celebrate his group's victory over the Gauls in Anatolia. It is believed that the statue was created by Epigonus, a sculptor of the Attalid dynasty. The statue depicts a dying Celtic warrior lying on his fallen shield next to his sword. 
Laocoon and his sons
The statue currently located in the Vatican Museum in Rome, Laocoon and his Sons, is also known as the Laocoon Group and was originally created by three great Greek sculptors from the island of Rhodes, Agesender, Polydorus and Atenodoros. This life-size statue is made of marble and depicts a Trojan priest named Laocoon, along with his sons Timbraeus and Antiphantes, strangled by sea serpents. 
The Colossus of Rhodes
A statue depicting the Greek Titan named Helios, the Colossus of Rhodes was first erected in the city of Rhodes between 292 and 280 BC. Recognized today as one of the Seven Wonders of the Ancient World, the statue was built to celebrate the victory of Rhodes over the ruler of Cyprus during the 2nd century. Known as one of the tallest statues of Ancient Greece, the original statue was destroyed by an earthquake that struck Rhodes in 226 BC. 
Discus thrower
Built by one of the best sculptors of Ancient Greece during the 5th century - Myron, the Discobolus was a statue originally placed at the entrance to the Panathinaikon Stadium in Athens, Greece, where the first event of the Olympic Games was held. The original statue, made of alabaster stone, did not survive the destruction of Greece and was never restored. 
Diadumen
Found off the island of Tilos, Diadumen is an ancient Greek sculpture that was created during the 5th century. The original statue, which was restored in Tilos, is currently part of the collections of the National Archaeological Museum in Athens. 
Trojan horse
Made of marble and coated with a special bronze plating, the Trojan Horse is an Ancient Greek sculpture that was built between 470 BC and 460 BC to represent the Trojan Horse in Homer's Iliad. The original masterpiece survived the devastation of Ancient Greece and is currently housed in the Archaeological Museum of Olympia, Greece. 
The statue was probably discovered during the construction of their villa in Rome and was kept in the Palazzo Ludovisi on Pincio until its acquisition by Pope Clement XII.
LinksAttalus I SoterAttalus I Soter (ancient Greek: Άτταλος Α" ο Σωτήρ; 269 - 197 BC) - Pergamon ruler from the Attalid dynasty, who inherited power from his uncle Eumenes in 241 and assumed the royal title in 230. The son of a princess from the Seleucid family, Attalus was the first of the Attalids to claim the royal title. He refused to pay tribute to the Asia Minor Celts (Galatians) and, having defeated them under the walls of Pergamum, began to call himself king. His ambition aroused the suspicion of Antiochus Hierax, and in the ensuing war Attalus drove the Seleucids out of Asia Minor into Cilicia. In 228-222. The Seleucids managed to regain their lost possessions in Anatolia, partly because Attalus was busy confronting the Macedonian king Philip V. He sided with Rome during the first and second Macedonian wars, and also stood up for the Rhodians oppressed by Philip, but died shortly before the final defeating your main enemy. GalatiansGalatians (Greek Γαλάται, lat. Galatae) - a union of Celtic tribes that invaded the Balkan Peninsula and Asia Minor in 279-277 BC. e. Titus Livius reports the name of the leader of the Gauls who reached Dardania - this is Brennus. With the help of the Bithynian king Nicomedes, they crossed the Hellespont to the Asian coast in a few days. The total number of Gauls who crossed was estimated at 20 thousand people, who were divided into three tribes: Tolostobogians, Trocms and Tectosagi. The first settled in Ionia, the second on the coast of the Hellespont, and the third reached the shores of Halys. The Gauls were by no means peaceful settlers. The king of Bithynia invited them in the hope of military assistance. Of the 20 thousand Gauls, half were considered warriors. They lived by collecting tribute from local tribes. The Gauls were distinguished by their tall stature, pale skin color and red (dyed) hair. They were armed with shields and long swords. Contemporaries note that the Gauls, having mixed with the Greeks and Phrygians, turned into Gallogreks. Shortly after the invasion, the Galatians were defeated first by the Greek army of Calippus at Thermopylae in 279 BC. e., and then by Antiochus I around 275 BC. e. However, despite these defeats, they continued to devastate the western part of Asia Minor over the next 46 years, until they were pushed back by the troops of the Pergamon king Attalus I to an area located in the central part of Asia Minor north of Phrygia, between the middle reaches of the Sangarius and Galis rivers; this region was called Galatia. According to Strabo, the Galatians were initially divided into three tribes, each of which, in turn, was divided into 4 more tribes, 12 leaders of these tribes in Greek sources are called tetrarchs (Greek τετραρχίαι); Each tetrarch was subordinate to a judge of the tetrarchy tribe and a military leader. All 12 tetrarchies had a common council of 300 people. In the 1st century AD e. power over the Galatians passed to Deiotarus, who, being the tetrarch of one of the Tolistobogoi tribes, fought on the side of Rome in the third Mithridatic War, received from the Romans the lands of all of Galatia. By the 1st century AD e. the region of the Tolistobogians bordered on Bithynia and Phrygia Epictetus, the Trocmians on Pontus and Cappadocia, and the Texotagoi on Great Phrygia adjacent to Pessinuntus. Strabo mentions that all three Galatian tribes had a common language, the Galatian language itself is attested only by personal names and place names in Greek and Latin transmission; presumably close to Gallic. Preserved until the 5th century. Gallic invasion of the BalkansThe Gallic invasion of the Balkans was a series of military campaigns of the Celts from the end of the 4th century BC to the beginning of the 3rd century BC. e., described in ancient Greek sources and confirmed by archaeological finds. A union of Celtic tribes belonging to the La Tène culture began moving southeast to the Balkan Peninsula in the 4th century BC. e., this movement reached its culmination at the beginning of the 3rd century BC. e., when the invasion of Illyria, Macedonia and Thessaly began. The invasion was made possible due to the devastation caused by the Diadochi wars. Some of the Celts then moved to Anatolia, where they founded Galatia. In 279 BC. e. The Gauls moved to Greece, defeated the Greeks at the Thermopylae pass and plundered the sanctuary at Delphi, but were soon themselves defeated, and their leader Brennus died from his wounds. Historians describe the cruelties that the Gauls committed against the local Greeks after the capture of Kallithea. After the invasion, Greek masters depicted the dying Gauls in their sculptures, one of the most famous is “The Dying Gaul” Another military campaign of the Gauls was to Pergamon, where they were defeated by King Attalus, who immortalized this victory by erecting the Pergamon Altar. Gnaeus Manlius VulsonGnaeus Manlius Vulsō (lat. Gnaeus Manlius Vulsō; 3rd-2nd centuries BC) - ancient Roman politician from the patrician Manliev family, consul of 189 BC. e. During the praetorship in 195 BC. e. was governor of Sicily. He achieved consulate only after two defeats in the elections and was sent to the East, where the Syrian War, victorious for Rome, ended. Here Gnaeus Manlius invaded Galatia and defeated the local tribes, who had previously supported the enemies of Rome. In 188 BC. e. he participated in the conclusion of the Apamean Peace with Antiochus III and the establishment of a new order in Asia Minor. Upon returning to Rome, Vulson was accused of arbitrariness and incompetence. There are hypotheses in historiography that this accusation is connected with the Scipionic trials that began soon. Gnaeus Manlius managed to avoid prosecution and achieve triumph. In 184 BC. e. he took part in the censorship elections, but was unable to defeat Marcus Porcius Cato and his colleague Lucius Valerius Flaccus. After this, he is no longer mentioned in the sources. Palace of ConservativesPalazzo dei Conservatori (Italian: Palazzo dei Conservatori) is a Renaissance public building on the Capitoline Square in Rome. The palace houses most of the exhibits of the Capitoline Museums. Among them are such universally recognized masterpieces as “The Capitoline Wolf” and “The Dying Gaul”. Evgeniy SandovEugen Sandow (eng. Eugen Sandow, also known as Eugene Sandow; real name - Friedrich Wilhelm Müller (German: Friedrich Wilhelm Müller); April 2, 1867, Königsberg, Prussia - October 14, 1925, London, England) - athlete of the 19th century, considered the founder of bodybuilding. Clarkson, PatriciaPatricia Davies Clarkson (born December 29, 1959, New Orleans, Louisiana, USA) is an American actress. Winner of two primetime Emmy and Golden Globe awards, nominated for an Oscar and Tony award. LudovisiLudovisi (Italian: Ludovisi) is an Italian aristocratic family from Bologna, which rose greatly at the beginning of the 17th century, when Cardinal Alessandro Ludovisi became Pope Gregory XV in 1621. Gregory XV's nephew Ludovico Ludovisi, at the age of 26 (1621), became a cardinal, and his cousin Niccolò Albergati-Ludovisi, at the age of 37 (1645), also became a cardinal. At the end of the 17th century, when the Ludovisi clan died out in the male tribe, its last representative married the head of the Bolognese clan Boncompagni. The descendants of this marriage bear the double surname Boncompagni-Ludovisi. Representatives of the family kept their artistic treasures (such as the Ludovisi sarcophagus, the Ludovisi throne, the ancient statues “Ares Ludovisi”, “Orestes and Pylades” and “The Dying Gaul”) in Rome in the Palazzo Ludovisi and in the villa of the same name. They are now exhibited in the Palazzo Altemps. Ludovisi, LudovicoLudovico Ludovisi (Italian Ludovico Ludovisi; October 27, 1595, Bologna, Papal States - November 18, 1632, ibid.) - Italian curial cardinal, cardinal-nephew (since 1621) from the Ludovisi family. Camerlengo of the Holy Roman Church from March 17, 1621 to June 7, 1623. Archbishop of Bologna from March 29, 1621 to November 18, 1632. Prefect of the Signature of the Apostolic Breves, from March 16 to November 12, 1622. Prefect of the Sacred Congregation for the Propaganda of the Faith from November 12, 1622 to November 18, 1632 Vice-Chancellor of the Holy Roman Church and Sommist of the Apostolic Letters from 7 June 1623 to 18 November 1632. Cardinal Priest from 15 February 1621, with the title of the Church of Santa Maria in Traspontina from 17 March 1621 to 7 June 1623. Cardinal Priest with the title of the Church of San Lorenzo in Damaso from June 7, 1623. Known as a patron of the arts, through whose efforts the famous collection of antiquities was assembled, which for a long time adorned the Villa Ludovisi in Rome. Marvel, ElizabethElizabeth Marvel (born November 27, 1969, Orange, California, USA) is an American actress. PergamonPergamon (Pergamon, ancient Greek Πέργᾰμον) is an ancient city in the historical region of Mysia in western Asia Minor, the former center of the influential state of the Attalid dynasty. Founded in the 12th century. BC e. immigrants from mainland Greece. In 283-133 BC. e. capital of the Kingdom of Pergamon. It reached its greatest prosperity under Eumenes I (263-241 BC) and Eumenes II (197-159 BC). It was one of the largest economic and cultural centers of the Hellenistic world. His early Christian church appears in the Revelation of John the Evangelist as one of the seven churches of the Apocalypse. The ruins are on the northwestern outskirts of modern Bergamo in Turkey, 26 km from the Aegean Sea. Sallust GardensGardens of Sallust (lat. Horti Sallustiani) are once luxurious gardens in Ancient Rome, which previously belonged to the Roman historian Sallust. Gardens in the form of a stadium or hippodrome were located outside the then city wall in front of the Collin Gate in the north of the city at the foot of the Quirinal. Sallust became the owner of the plot of Gaius Julius Caesar after he was killed. On the territory of the gardens there was a temple of Venus, an obelisk of Sallust, and numerous statues that were included in the Ludovisi collection (for example, the Ludovisi Throne). After Sallust, the gardens belonged to various Roman emperors. The most extensive ruins within the gardens are those of Hadrian's Palace (today 14 meters below road level). Sarsgaard, PeterJohn Peter Sarsgaard (born March 7, 1971, Illinois, USA) is an American actor. Scott, CampbellCampbell Whalen Scott (born July 19, 1961, New York, USA) is an American actor, director, producer and screenwriter who made his debut in 1986. Scott was twice nominated for an Independent Spirit Award and received a National Board of Review Award in 2002. SculptureSculpture (Latin sculptura, from sculpo - I cut, carve) is a type of fine art, the works of which have a three-dimensional form and are made of hard or plastic materials. In the broadest sense of the word, it is the art of creating from clay, wax, stone, metal, wood, bone and other materials the image of humans, animals and other natural objects in their tactile, bodily forms. An artist who devotes himself to the art of sculpture is called a sculptor or sculptor. His main task is to convey the human figure in a real or idealized form, animals play a secondary role in his work, and other objects appear only as subordinates or are processed exclusively for ornamental purposes. The word sculpture, in addition to the type of art itself, also denotes each individual work of art. Ancient Greece sculptureAncient Greek sculpture is one of the highest achievements of the culture of antiquity, which left an indelible mark on world history. The origin of Greek sculpture can be attributed to the era of Homeric Greece (XII-VIII centuries BC). Already in the archaic era, in the 7th-6th centuries, wonderful statues and ensembles were created. The heyday and highest rise of Greek sculpture occurred during the period of the early and high classics (5th century BC). And the 4th century BC. e., already the period of the late classics, also left in history several names, great sculptors, each of whom had his own individual handwriting. The sculpture of this period foreshadowed the changes that occurred with the advent of a new historical period - Hellenism. |
On 8 December 2017, during the Hermitage Days, the exhibition “The Fallen. The Dying Gaul and the Lesser Attalid Dedication. From the Museo Archeologico Nazionale, Naples” will open in the Roman Courtyard of the New Hermitage.
Amazon
Marble. Length: 125 cm
Dying Gaul
Roman copy (first quarter of the 2nd century AD) of a Greek original of Pergamene workmanship (late 3rd century BC)
Marble. Height: 57 cm
Museo Archeologico Nazionale, Naples, Inv. No. 6015
The statue derives from the Lesser Attalid Dedication, a group set up on the Acropolis in Athens around 200 BC
Giant
Roman copy (first quarter of the 2nd century AD) of a Greek original of Pergamene workmanship (late 3rd century BC)
Marble. Length: 134 cm
Museo Archeologico Nazionale, Naples, Inv. No. 6013
The statue derives from the Lesser Attalid Dedication, a group set up on the Acropolis in Athens around 200 BC.
Amazon
Roman copy (first quarter of the 2nd century AD) of a Greek original of Pergamene workmanship (late 3rd century BC)
Marble. Length: 125 cm
Museo Archeologico Nazionale, Naples, Inv. No. 6012
The statue derives from the Lesser Attalid Dedication, a group set up on the Acropolis in Athens around 200 BC.
The display consists of unique works, surviving Roman copies of the bronze originals that once adorned Athens: sculptures of the Dying Gaul, an Amazon, a Persian and a Giant. The ancient statues formed part of a famous monument (the Dedication) commemorating victory over the Gauls that was installed on the Acropolis in Athens around 200 BC by Attalus I, King of Pergamon.
The ensemble of sculptures commemorated the military campaigns of the Attalid dynasty. The monument depicting mythological and historical battles with the enemies of Pergamon and the Greek world – clashes with Giants and Amazons, the repulsion of raids by the Gauls and victory over the Persians – became known as the Lesser Dedication, because it was of smaller size than the Greater Attalid Dedication set up in Pergamon.
The Lesser Dedication group were identified on the basis of an account from Pausanias: the ancient traveler and geographer described the subjects of the compositions and mentioned the unusual size of the figures: “By the south wall are represented the legendary war with the Giants, who once dwelt about Thrace and on the isthmus of Pallene, the battle between the Athenians and the Amazons, the engagement with the Persians at Marathon and the destruction of the Gauls in Mysia. Each is about two cubits, and all were dedicated by Attalus.” (Pausanias I, 25, 2; translated by W.H.S. Jones)
The Athenian monument was an ensemble made up of four compositions, with each group on a separate pedestal. The length of the whole platform reached 124 meters and the total number of bronze figures was around 120.
The subjects were arranged in chronological order: the earliest was the fight between the Giants and the Gods, then came the battles between the Greeks and the Amazons and between the Greeks and the Persians. The culmination was the final group that presented the battle against the Gauls at the River Caicus. In this way, Pergamon’s victory was equated with the victories in the Greco-Persian War and the significance of the campaign against the Gauls was elevated to the level of heroic myth. Pergamon, the heir to Athens, was presented as the defender of the civilized world against Barbarian aggression. In contrast to the previous tradition of “victorious” dedications, in this instance the sculptors’ attention was focused on the defeated enemies. The four sculptures from the Archaeological Museum in Naples are key figures for the entire work: each of them represents the subject of one of the “battles”.
Three personages in the Neapolitan group are sprawled on the ground, one of them is trying to get back up. The surface of their bodies is covered in deep wounds – the openings from which blood streams were depicted sculpturally and the blood was most probably also colored red.
The figure of the Dying Gaul almost completely repeats the famous sculpture in the Capitoline Museum, except for the absence of the torc and the horn. The visual accent on the wounds is in keeping with the descriptions of Gauls in the works of ancient writers: “The fact that they fight naked makes their wounds conspicuous and their bodies are fleshy and white, as is natural, since they are never uncovered except in battle.” (Liv. 38, 21)
One of the most expressive is the statue of a dead woman, Antiope, the queen of the Amazons, with a beautiful face and one bare breast. As drawings of the statue made in the 16th century show, originally the Amazon was depicted with a child. The image of a young mother who perished in battle was deliberately calculated to arouse sorrow and sympathy in the viewer.
The figure of the Persian can be identified by the thin baggy trousers and Eastern headwear. This barbarian is lying sprawled, half-covered and clearly slain.
The dead Giant was undoubtedly a ruler, since the ribbon lying next to the vanquished body indicates that this was a king. His face resembles a centaur; the head is thrown back, the mouth wide open; the locks of hair look like snakes. The depiction might be considered grotesque, yet at the same time contemplation of the immobile corpse arouses a sense of tragedy rather than triumph.
The artistic images from the cycle are an embodiment of various degrees of suffering and death – wounded, dying, killing oneself and one’s own, and already dead. It has long since been noted that from the entire composition only the sculptures of the vanquished have survived. There is not a single figure in an attacking pose. Although punishment and death were traditional subjects in Greek art, human beings had never before been presented in such a helpless state. In the Pergamene “battles” the horror of death becomes not merely the main premise, but the only one. In the opinion of a number of scholars, such a radical interpretation was introduced in the era of imperial Rome.
The copies of the sculptures from the Dedication were perhaps commissioned by Emperor Trajan, who waged numerous wars with the Dacians. The works were uncovered in Rome in the summer of 1514 on the site of a monastery located on top of ancient ruins. It is presumed that the sculptures of the Pergamene barbarians once adorned the Baths of Agrippa. Immediately after the discovery, in the 16th century, the Gaul, Giant, Amazon and Persian, were referred to not as barbarians, but as “Horatii and Curiatii” heroes from republican-era Roman history. That is how they were called in the inventory books of the collection of Alfonsina Orsini de’ Medici, the first owner of the statues. After Alfonsina's death, the antiquities passed to Margaret of Parma. Then from 1587 to 1790 they were owned by the Farnese family. They were restored in the workshops of Giovanni Battista de" Bianchi in the 16th century and Carlo Albacini in the late 18th century.
Together with the Farnese collection, the sculptures from Rome found their way to Naples, to the Royal Bourbon Museum that is now the National Archaeological Museum.
The motifs embodied in the sculptures of the Lesser Dedication were long-lived in Antiquity and later European art. Similar poses and figures can be seen in the depictions of captured and slain barbarians on Roman triumphal monuments and sarcophagi, on Etruscan urns and lamps. The expressive poses and faces of the Pergamene sculptures inspired by artists of the Renaissance and Baroque eras – Raphael, Michelangelo, Veronese, Tintoretto, Caravaggio and many others. In their works the “defeated barbarians” were transformed into images of Christian martyrs and saints. In the 17th and 18th centuries, as the Baroque gave way to Classicism, the ancient motifs continued to stir artists’ imaginations. And even when the Ancient World and the style it inspired became a thing of the past, the images of Hellenistic art became a source of inspiration and new meaning. The tragic emotional experience of history characteristic of the ancients and a conviction of the inevitability of fate was reborn in images of revolutions and worldwide catastrophes.
The display of sculptures from the Museo Archeologico Nazionale, Naples continues a series of exhibitions in the Roman Courtyard of the New Hermitage of masterpieces of ancient art, such as the statue of the river god Ilissos from the British Museum in 2014 and the statue of an archaic Kore from the Acropolis Museum in Athens in 2016.
The exhibition’s curator is Anna Alexeyevna Trofimova, Candidate of Art Studies, head of the State Hermitage’s Department of the Ancient World.
A Russian-language brochure has been prepared for the exhibition (State Hermitage Publishing House, 2017, 32 pp., illus.). The author is Anna Trofimova.
The exhibition is taking place within the framework of the Hermitage–Italy Foundation projects through the agency of Villaggio Globale International.
On December 8, 2017, during the Hermitage Days, the exhibition “Defeated. The Dying Gaul and the Lesser Initiations of Attalus. From the collection of the National Archaeological Museum of Naples."
The exhibition includes unique monuments, Roman copies of bronze originals of Athenian dedications that have survived to this day: sculptures of the Dying Gaul, Amazon, Persian and Giant. The ancient statues date back to the famous monument to the victory over the Gauls, erected around 200 BC. on the Athenian Acropolis by the ruler of the Kingdom of Pergamum, Attalus I.
The historical circumstances that gave rise to the erection of the sculptures were related to the Attalid military campaigns. Monuments depicting mythological and historical battles with the enemies of Pergamon and the Greek world - battles with giants and Amazons, repelling Gallic raids, victory over the Persians - were called “Small Dedications”, which differed from the “Great Dedications” installed in Pergamon by being smaller in size.
The group of "Minor Initiations" was determined on the basis of the message of Pausanias; the ancient historian described the subjects of the compositions and mentioned the unusual size of the figures (Paus. I, 25, 2): “At the southern wall of the acropolis, Attalus built monuments, each approximately two cubits in size, depicting the so-called war with the giants who once lived on the isthmus of Pallene in Thrace, the battle of the Athenians with the Amazons, their glorious deed at Marathon against the Medes, and the defeat of the Galatians in the Mission.” The ensemble of the Athenian monument consisted of four compositions, each group was on a separate pedestal. The length of the entire platform reached one hundred and twenty-four meters, the total number of bronze figures was about one hundred and twenty.
The plots were arranged in chronological order: the earliest was the battle of giants and gods, then the battle of the Greeks with the Amazons and the battle of the Greeks and Persians. The culmination was the last group - it represented the battle with the Gauls at the Caic River. Thus, the victory of Pergamum was equated with victories in the Greco-Persian War, the significance of the battles with the Gauls rose to the level of heroic myth. Pergamum, the heir of Athens, appeared as the defender of the civilized world from barbarian aggression. Unlike the previous tradition of “victorious” dedications, now the focus of the sculptors’ attention was on defeated enemies. Four sculptures from the Archaeological Museum of Naples are key figures for the entire work: each corresponds to one of the plots of the “battles”.
Three characters from the Naples group are prostrate on the ground, one of them is trying to get up. The surface of the bodies is covered with deep wounds - holes pouring out streams of blood are depicted plastically; the blood, most likely, was also conveyed with red paint. The figure of the Dying Gaul almost completely repeats the famous “Gal” from the Capitoline Museum, only the collar and horn are missing. The visual emphasis on the wounds corresponds to the description of the Gauls by ancient authors. “The Gauls go into battle naked, but in other cases they are never naked, and that is why any wound was visible on their pale, stout bodies” (Liv. XXXVIII, 21).
One of the most expressive is the statue of a dead woman, the queen of the Amazons, Antiope, with her half-naked breasts and a beautiful face. As shown by drawings of the statue made in the 16th century, the Amazon was originally depicted with a baby. The image of a young mother who died in battle was deliberately designed to evoke grief and sympathy from the viewer. The figure of the Persian is identified by thin trousers and an oriental headdress. The barbarian lies face down, half-covered, he has already been killed.
The dead giant is undoubtedly a ruler, since the ribbon lying next to the body signifies that the vanquished was a king. His face resembles a centaur, his head is thrown back, his mouth is wide open, his hair strands look like snakes. The image can be considered grotesque, while the contemplation of his motionless body evokes not triumph, but a tragic feeling.
The artistic images of the cycle embodied different stages of suffering and death - the wounded, the dying, those killing themselves and loved ones, and the already dead. It has long been noted that of the entire composition, only sculptures of the defeated have survived; there is not a single figure in an attacking pose. Although punishment and death were traditional subjects in Greek art, never before had man been represented so helplessly. In the Pergamon “battles,” the horror of death becomes not only the main, but also the only message - such a radical interpretation, according to a number of scientists, was introduced in the era of imperial Rome.
