Hercules and the Nemean Lion. Florentine art, 16th-17th century. Patinated bronze, splendid transparent reddish patina.

Bronze only 36 x 21 x 15 cm

The group presented here represents the first labor of Hercules.
King Eurystheus tasked the hero with killing the invincible lion that terrorized the Nemean area.

A creature born from the crossbreeding of deities, it possessed fur impenetrable by traditional weapons. Hercules, in fact, managed to defeat it, strangling it in its lair after a fierce fight.

After flaying him, Hercules used his impenetrable fur to protect himself; from this episode, the lion's skin became one of the Greek hero's distinctive features.

This beautiful bronze, of considerable size, is an unpublished version of the subject.

Often depicted in the cycle of the Labours of Hercules, the most famous bronze casts are those fashioned by Giambologna and his school, which our sculpture seems to draw inspiration from. Especially in the gesture of the arm brandishing the club, we find similarities with several sculptures by the great Florentine artist.

The splendid transparent reddish patina and the attention to detail link it to the Tuscan Renaissance school. In particular, the treatment of the nails, square in the best Giambologna tradition, the thick locks of hair, and the powerful muscles point to that school.

A sculpture that is open to further study, for a cultured collector who does not disdain grand decoration.

Bibliography:
Beatrice Paolozzi Strozzi-Dimitrios Zikos, Giambologna the Gods the Heroes, exhibition catalogue, Giunti Editori SPA, Florence, 2006, 2009, pp. 184-185.