1000 Scupltures of Genius. Patrick Bade

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      The greater-than-life-size figures of this relief adorned the Pergamon altar, a structure at the highest point of the city of Pergamon in Turkey, capital of one of the Hellenistic kingdoms. The sculpture filled the frieze, which wrapped around the outside of the building and along its great staircase. It depicted the battle between the gods and giants. The giants are shown with wings on their backs and snakes emerging from them, in contrast to the gods, shown in typical Greek-style robes. In this fragment, Athena, the central figure, battles with a giant, on the left. She is pulling back his head as he pulls in the opposite direction, trying to escape. At the same time, he struggles to hold onto the hand of his mother, Gaia, the earth and mother of all giants. She is shown at the bottom of the scene, as though emerging from the earth itself. Gaia was the source of all power for the giants, and as long as they touch her they cannot be killed. But this giant has lost his grip, and the winged victory figure already swoops in behind Athena, ready to crown her victor. For Athena, the battle is one. This dramatic battle plays out around the entire frieze, with the same kind of violent struggle seen here. The scene is in high relief, with deeply cut shadows accentuating the drama, and figures spilling off of the wall and onto the staircase.

      111. Anonymous. Zeus and Porphyrion during the Battle with the Giants, pedestal frieze, Great Altar of Zeus, Pergamon (Turkey), c. 180 B.C.E. Marble, h: 230 cm. Pergamonmuseum, Berlin (Germany). Greek Antiquity.

      112. Anonymous. Laocoön, Roman copy after a bronze original created in Pergame (Turkey) by Agesander, Athenodoros and Polydorus around 150 B.C.E. Marble, h: 242 cm. Museo Pio Clementino, Vatican (Italy). Greek Antiquity.

      Laocoön was a Trojan priest. When the Achaeans, who were holding Troy under siege, left the famous Trojan horse on the beach, Laocoön tried to warn the Trojan leaders against bringing it into the city, fearing it was a trap. Athena, acting as helper and protector of the Greeks, punished Laocoön for his interference. She had him and his two sons attacked by giant snakes. In this famous sculpture group, probably a Roman copy of the Hellenistic original, one son breaks free of the snakes, looking back to see his father and brother being killed. The baroque style of the piece ties it to the Pergamon school. It exhibits the same drama, seen in the straining muscles and the faces contorted in pain. In fact, the pose of Laocoön seems to echo that of the giant who battle Athena on the Pergamon Altar (see nos. 110, 111).

      113. Anonymous. Menelaos with the Body of Patroklos, Roman copy of a Greek original created during the 3rd century B.C.E., restored during the 17th century. Marble, h: 253 cm.Loggia dei Lanzi, Florence (Italy). Greek Antiquity.

      114. Anonymous. Ludovisi Group, Roman copy after a bronze original erected by the kings of Pergamon (Turkey), Attalus I and Eumenes II, around 240 B.C.E. Marble, h: 211 cm. Museo Nazionale Romano, Rome (Italy). Greek Antiquity.

      115. Anonymous. Statue of Antinous, Favourite of Emperor Hadrian, c. 130–138 A.D. Marble, h: 199 cm. Archaeological Museum of Delphi, Delphi (Greece). Roman Antiquity.

      116. Anonymous. The Punishment of Dirce, called the “Farnese Bull”, Roman copy of an original created during the 2nd century B.C.E. by Apollonius of Tralles and his brother Tauriscus. Marble, h: 240 cm. Museo Archeologico Nazionale, Naples (Italy). Greek Antiquity.

      One of the largest pieces of sculpture created in antiquity, this piece was made during the second century B.C.E., in the Hellenistic period. It has all the hallmarks of Hellenistic sculpture: an elaborate assemblage of multiple figures, dramatic action, and a pyramid-shaped composition. It was made by artists from the Greek island of Rhodes for a Roman politician. This copy decorated the Baths of Caracalla in the later Roman empire. It was there that it was rediscovered in the sixteenth century and placed in the Farnese Palace, a residence of the Pope. The scene depicted is from the story of Antiope and Dirce. Antiope was the mother of twin boys, whom she was forced to abandon. They survived, but her punishment was to be the slave of her aunt, Dirce. She escaped and went to find her sons. Dirce found her and ordered her tied to a bull and trampled. Antiope was rescued by her sons, who instead inflict the punishment on Dirce. Here, the boys tie Dirce to a raging bull; her fate is clear.

      117. Anonymous. Aphrodite of Melos, called the “Venus de Milo”, c. 100 B.C.E. Marble, h: 202 cm. Musée du Louvre, Paris (France). Greek Antiquity.

      The Aphrodite of Melos, or Venus de Milo, is an original Greek sculpture dating to the Hellenistic period. It was discovered in a field along with other sculptural fragments, including a separate arm holding an apple, which belongs with this figure. The apple is probably a reference to the mythical “Judgment of Paris”. In that tale, the goddess of Discord tossed a golden apple inscribed “for the loveliest” towards the goddesses Aphrodite, Athena, and Hera. The young Trojan prince, Paris, was asked to decide which goddess should be awarded the apple. Each tried to bribe Paris but he chose Aphrodite, who offered him the love of the most beautiful mortal woman in the world. That woman, of course, was Helen of Sparta, already married to the Greek king. Her abduction by Paris started the Trojan War. While Aphrodite is criticised by Homer for her role in starting the conflict, СКАЧАТЬ