Hercules Statuette, Bronze

Hercules Statuette, Bronze

Small statue of Hercules (Hercules), made from genuine Bronze. The Hercules Statuette is inspired by a Roman marble statue from the 2nd century AD. Hercules wears the coat of the slain Nemean lion and his club as an attribute. The statuette is traditionally hand-crafted and casted individually in lost-wax-moulds. The statue of Hercules is placed on a profiled pedestal with a total height of about 11,8 cm. A certificate is included.

Hercules Statuette, Bronze

The statue of Hercules is based on the "Heracles and Telephos" statue group, which was found on the Esquiline Hill in Rome before 1551 and later included to the collection of the Villa d'Este near Tivoli. That is why today the origin is often wrongly given as Tivoli. In 1807, Hercules was sent to the Louvre Museum, where the marble statue still today can be seen. It's a Roman copy from the 1st to the 2nd century AD of an original Greek statue from the 4th century BC.
Hercules was a demigod, son of Jupiter / Zeus and the mortal Alcmene. He was one of the most famous and popular heros of antiquity, even if he is not counted among the gods of Olympus. In addition to the twelve famous tasks he had to solve for Eurystheus, Hercules was also aan adventurer who conquered cities and what always threatened by Jupiter's wife Juno (greek Hera). He performed further deeds by fighting the Giants, saving Prometheus from his torments, or defeating the Giant Antaeus. His fate came true when his wife Deianeira fell victim to a treachery and gave him a poisoned robe. In pain, Hercules burns himself and rose to the gods in the Olympus. His behavior was an example for the people of antiquity, his strength and courage were adored. But he was not only patron saint of warriors, but he was a protector of the weak. Hercules is sometimes pictured holding his son Telephos in his arms as a protector.
The great popularity of Hercules can be seen in the large marble statues of antiquity, but also in small figures of bronze or terracotta which were adored in household shrines.