The Cleveland Museum of Art

Collection Online as of April 19, 2024

Hercules

Hercules

c. 30 BCE–20 CE
bronze with silver and copper inlays
Overall: 14.5 x 8 cm (5 11/16 x 3 1/8 in.)
Purchase from the J. H. Wade Fund 1987.2
Location: 103 Roman

Did You Know?

Hercules is the Roman name for the classical hero known in Greek as Herakles.

Description

This bronze statuette is a nude figure of the hero Hercules. He stands in a contrapposto pose, with the majority of his weight on one leg. Over his left arm, Hercules holds the skin of the Nemean Lion, having slayed the beast as part of his Twelve Labors and now carrying the pelt as a trophy. Although now mostly lost, Hercules once held his signature wooden club in his right hand. Roman artists often portrayed Hercules as middle-aged, as though greater maturity would increase his power and virility.
  • Private Collection, Switzerland
    ?-1987
    Robert Haber & Associates, New York, NY, sold to the Cleveland Museum of Art
    1987-
    The Cleveland Museum of Art, Cleveland, OH
  • Kozloff, Arielle P., David Gordon Mitten, et al. The Gods Delight: The Human Figure in Classical Bronze. Cleveland, Ohio: Published by the Cleveland Museum of Art in cooperation with Indiana University Press, 1988. pp. 323-326, cat. 61 (J.J. Herrmann, Jr.).
    Poster and Invitation, Basel Fair, 1985.
    Warner, Marina "Antiques: Gods and Goddesses", Architectural Digest, Vol. 43 (October 1986). p. 208
    Uhlenbrock, Jaimee Pugliese, and Karl Galinsky. Herakles: Passage of the Hero Through 1000 Years of Classical Art. New Rochelle, N.Y.: A.D. Caratzas, 1986. frontispiece
    The Cleveland Museum of Art. Handbook of the Cleveland Museum of Art. Cleveland, OH: The Cleveland Museum of Art, 1991. Reproduced: p. 12 archive.org
  • Gods and Heroes: Ancient Legends in Renaissance Art. The Cleveland Museum of Art, Cleveland, OH (organizer) (August 26-December 31, 2017).
    The Gods Delight: The Human Figure in Classical Bronze. The Cleveland Museum of Art, Cleveland, OH (organizer) (November 16, 1988-January 8, 1989)
    The Year in Review for 1987. The Cleveland Museum of Art, Cleveland, OH (organizer) (February 24-April 17, 1988).
    Herakles, Passage of the Hero, Bard College, NY (Spring 1986).
    Basel Antiques Fair, Basel, Switzerland (April 1985).
  • {{cite web|title=Hercules|url=false|author=|year=c. 30 BCE–20 CE|access-date=19 April 2024|publisher=Cleveland Museum of Art}}

Source URL:

https://www.clevelandart.org/art/1987.2