Heraklion Archaeological Museum - CollectiveAccess System : Sculptures : Marble statue of Emperor Hadrian [Γ5]

Marble statue of Emperor Hadrian

Γ5

Stone (White Pentelic marble)

Mended from two pieces, missing heads and parts of arms of both figures and large part of Hadrian's cloak. Scattered minor chipping, small restoration on emperor's left leg.

Total Height: 224 cm. Height of captive: 80 cm. Height of pedestal: 13 cm. Max. Width: 90 cm. Max. Thickness: 46 cm.

Knossos

Roman period:

various suggestions between 117 - 130 AD:

Gallery:

XXVII

Case:

Not in case

Exhibition thematic unit:

Sculpture. Hellenistic period (3rd-2nd c. BC) Roman period (1st c. BC-3rd c. AD)

Statues of mortals

Description

Headless statue of an emperor standing frontally with his weight on his right foot. His right hand, probably originally holding a sword, is loosely extended, while his raised left hand probably rested on a spear. He is wearing an ornate cuirass over his tunica, a richly draped cloak (paludamentum) over his left shoulder, and elaborate leather footwear. The rich decoration of the cuirass has as its central theme a frontal Athena Promachos crowned by two Victories. The goddess is standing on the back of the she-wolf of Rome, nursing Romulus and Remus, while the Victories are standing on defeated barbarians. On the sternum is a relief gorgoneion (Medusa head), while the upper ends of the pteryges (hanging flaps) feature relief motifs including the heads of Ammon, Medusa, an elephant and a lion. A kneeling male figure with his hands bound behind his back, where there is a rectangular shield, functions both as an additional support for the oversize statue and as part of the composition. The kneeling figure represents a defeated/captured nation. The overall depiction of the emperor triumphant and the decorative elements of the cuirass, taken together with parallels from the Eastern Roman Empire, permit us to identify this statue as Hadrian.

Bibliography:

L. Savignoni, "Esplorazione archeologica delle provincie occidentali di Creta 1: Topografia e monumenti", Monumenti Antichi 11 (1901), 307 f. Abb. 10. A. Hekler, "Beiträge zur Geschichte der antiken Panzerstatuen", Jahresheft des ӧsterrreichischen ArchäologischenInstituts in Wien 19/20 (1919), 232 Nr. 5. L. Beschi, "Adriano e Creta", in Antichità Cretesi. Studi in onore di Doro Levi II, CronA 13, 1974, 219-226 Taf. 30. 31. Κ. Stemmer, Untersuchungen zur Typologie, Chronologie und Ikonographie der Panzerstatuen, Berlin 1978, 37 f. Kat. III 13 Taf. 22, 1. I. Romeo - E. C. Portale, Gortina III. Le sculture, Padua 1998, 445‒451 Taf. 63. M. Lagogianni-Georgakarakos, Die römischen Porträts Kretas. Bezirk Heraklion, CSIR Griechenland 6, 1, Athen 2002, 89‒91 Nr. 70 Taf. 72‒74. R. A. Gergel, "Agora S166 and Related Works: The Iconography, Typology, and Interpretation of the Eastern Hadrianic Breastplate Type", ΧΑΡΙΣ. Essays in Honor of Sara A. Immerwahr, Hesperia Suppl. 33, Princeton, 2004, 377‒386, bes. 379‒381 Abb. 19, 3. P. Karanastasi, "Ο τύπος του θωρακοφόρου και η εικονογραφία των ρωμαίων αυτοκρατόρων στην Κρήτη", in Creta romana e protobizantina: atti del congresso internazionale (Iraklion, 23-30 settembre 2000), Padova 2004, vol. IΙΙ,2, 1050-1. B. Bergmann, "Bar Kochba und das Panhellenion. Die Panzerstatue Hadrians aus Hierapytna/Kreta (Istanbul, Archäologisches Museum Inv. Nr. 50) und der Panzertorso Inv. Nr. 8097 im Piräusmuseum von Athen", Istanbuler Mitteilungen 60, 2010, 269 f. Kat. 10 Abb. 17. D. Ojeda Nogales, Trajano e Adriano. Tipologia Estatuaria, Sevilla 2011, 46 f. Nr. 22 Taf. 16. P. Karanastasi, "Hadrian im Panzer. Kaiserstatuen zwischen Realpolitik und Philhellenismus", Jahrbuch des Deutschen Archäologischen Instituts 127/128 (212/2013), 333, 339, 342,362 nr. 11, Taf. 5,4-6. A. Kotsonas, "Greek and Roman Knossos: the pioneering investigations of Minos Kalokairinos", Annual of the British School at Athens 111(2016), 304-305.

Author:

K. S.

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