Detail View: ADJUNCT MODULE B: ITALIAN ART: Polyphallic Figurine of the God Mercury
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Collection:
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ADJUNCT MODULE B: ITALIAN ART
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Preferred Title:
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Polyphallic Figurine of the God Mercury
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Image View:
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Overall view; Mercury carrying a money sack, one of his attributes
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Creator:
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unknown (Roman (ancient))
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Location:
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repository: Museo Archeologico Nazionale (Naples, Campania, Italy) 27854
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Location Note:
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Piazza Museo 19; Secret Cabinet (Gabbinete or Gabinetto Segreto)
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GPS:
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+40.853378+14.250486
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Date:
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before 79 CE (creation)
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Cultural Context:
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Roman (ancient)
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Style Period:
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Imperial (Roman)
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Work Type 1:
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figurine
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Classification:
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Sculpture and Installations
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Material:
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bronze
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Technique:
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casting (process)
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Subjects:
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mythology (Classical); Hermes (Greek deity); polyphallic; tintinnabulum
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Description:
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The Secret Cabinet (Gabbinete) or Secret Room is the name of the Bourbon Monarchy gave the private rooms in which they held their fairly extensive collection of erotic or sexual items, mostly deriving from excavations of Pompeii and Herculaneum. Limiting viewership and censorship have always been part of the history of the collection. The phallus when associated with the Greek god Hermes (the Roman Mercury) was thought to offer apotropaic protection. In this example, currently missing its once-decorative bells, multi-phallic Mercury, identified by his wings, hat and money sack, clearly acted as a protective, apotropaic device. (Source: Wikipedia; http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Main_Page)
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Collection:
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Adjunct Module B: Italian Art
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Identifier:
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7A3-R-NAM-XC-GM-A01
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Rights:
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© Scott Gilchrist, Archivision, Inc.
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