Archaistic relief showing five divinities: Zeus, Hera, Athena, Aphrodite, and Apollo

Unknown (Roman)

Item type:

sculpture

Date of creation:

25 BCE-14 CE

Height:

70.0 cm  (27 9/16 in.)

Width:

130.0 cm  (51 3/16 in.)

Depth:

5.5 cm  (2 3/16 in.)

Technique / Medium:

marble (apparently Thasian)

School:

Augustan

Description

From the museum website:
Although the figures in this relief have been rendered in a style reminiscent of Archaic Greek sculpture, the piece is actually a work of the late first century B.C. or early first century A.D. Beginning in the late Hellenistic period, some workshops began to produce so-called Archaistic sculpture, which imitates Archaic artistic conventions, such as the stylized zig-zag pattern of drapery folds. Nevertheless, the manner in which the garments cling almost transparently to the bodies underneath clearly marks this relief as a later work. The subject represented is a procession of Olympian gods, from front to back: Zeus, carrying a thunderbolt and a staff; Hera, with a staff; Athena, holding a helmet and a spear; Aphrodite, with a flower; and Apollo, carrying his lyre.

Iconclass

12E13
representations ~ gods, demi-gods, heroes, etc. (Greek religion)
92B38(LYRE)
attributes of Apollo: lyre
92C28(HELMET AND SPEAR)
attributes of Minerva (HELMET AND SPEAR)
92C48(FLOWER)
attributes of Venus (FLOWER)
92C18(STAFF)
attributes of Juno (STAFF)
92B18(THUNDERBOLT AND STAFF)
attributes of Jupiter (THUNDERBOLT AND STAFF)
92
gods ~ classical mythology
12F
Roman religion (including Etruscan religion)

Instruments [MIMO Code] (notes)

Lyre [3501]

RIdIM images

Image URLs

image link 1

Notes

Extensive bibliography can be found on the museum web page (see image link 1)

RIdIM record id

6125