Media Information

 
 
 
Collection:
ADJUNCT MODULE A: ITALIAN ART
Preferred Title:
Laocoön
Alternate Title:
Laokoon and His Sons
Image View:
Detail, lower statue from front right; group depicted on an altar where Laocoön was making a sacrifice
Creator:
attributed to Agesandros of Rhodes (Ancient Greek sculptor, active ca. 10-20 CE); attributed to Athanadoros of Rhodes (Ancient Greek sculptor, active ca. 10-20 CE); attributed to Polydoros of Rhodes (Ancient Greek sculptor, active ca. 10-20 CE)
Location:
repository: Musei Vaticani (Rome (Vatican City), Santa Sede (Holy See), Italy) Inv. 1059
Location Note:
Pio Clementino Museum, Octagonal Court
GPS:
41.906389 12.454444
Date:
ca. 40-30 BCE (creation)
Cultural Context:
Ancient Greek
Style Period:
Hellenistic
Work Type 1:
sculpture (visual work)
Classification:
sculpture
Material:
marble
Technique:
carving (processes)
Measurements:
208 cm (height) x 163 (width) x 112 cm (depth)
Description:
Laocoön was a Trojan priest of Apollo who was attacked with his two sons, Antiphantes and Thymbraeus, by giant sea serpents sent by the gods Athena and Poseidon for warning the Trojans against accepting the Trojan Horse. Though not mentioned by Homer, the story of Laocoön had been the subject of a tragedy, now lost, by Sophocles and was mentioned by other Greek writers. This statue group was found in 1506 on the Esquiline Hill in Rome and immediately identified as the Laocoön described by Pliny the Elder as a masterpiece of the sculptors of Rhodes. Pope Julius II bought the statue immediately and had it displayed in the Statues Courtyard (Cortile delle Statue), making it the centerpiece of the collection. There has been much debate over the date of the statue, which would seem to have been made around 40-30 BCE. It has been restored and reconstructed several times. (Source: Vatican Museums (Musei Vaticani) [website]; http://mv.vatican.va /)
Collection:
Adjunct Module A: Italian Art
Identifier:
7A3-R-VM-LHS-A08
Rights:
© Scott Gilchrist, Archivision, Inc.

Laocoön