The Statue of Laocoon and His Sons: One of World"s Greatest Pieces of Art
The Statue of Laocoon and His Sons is a beautiful marble statue of the Hellenistic era and can been seen now in the Vatican Museums.
The Laocoon was probably made between 42 and 20 BC by three sculptors from the Mediterranean island of Rhodes: Athenodorus, Agesander and Polydorus, but we don't know if it is their original creation or a copy of an earlier work.
The Roman author Pliny the Elder described the Laocoon "a work to be preferred to all that the arts of painting and sculpture have produced".
Based on his account, the statue was located in the palace of the emperor Titus.
Thanks also to Pliny's description, the marble group was known in the ancient times but it was actually rediscovered only in 1506, when it was unearthed in a vineyard near the "Domus Aurea" in Rome.
Michelangelo was present at the excavation, that became an extremely popular event in the Rome of the Renaissance time.
The Laocoon was bought by Pope Julius II and placed in the courtyard of the Belvedere Garden at the Vatican where people started to come to see all its beauty and it is thus considered the foundation of the Vatican Museums.
The statue was took away by Napoleon in 1799, and placed in the Louvre until 1815 when it came back to Rome after the end of the Napoleon regime.
The work describes the myth of Laocoon, a Trojan priest who tried to prevent the Trojan horse to enter inside the city walls.
Because of this, Poseidon, god of the sea, sent sea serpents to kill Laocoon and his sons Antiphantes and Thymbraeus, as narrated in Virgil's "Aeneid".
At the time of the discovery, the right arms of the Laocoon and of one of his sons were missing.
After an extensive cultural debate about the original position of the arms, it was decided to restore them with the arms extended outwards, although Michelangelo believed the Laocoon's arm was bent backward over the shoulder.
In 1906 an archaeologist found a marble arm during an excavation, and thought it had some resemblance with the Laocoon Group.
He gave the marble piece to the Vatican and it was found out that it belonged to the Laocoon.
After several years, in 1950, the statue was restored again and the arm replaced in the original shape.
Over the centuries since its discovery, the Laocoon has greatly influenced many sculptors, artists and scholars.
Michelangelo was very impressed by the power of this grandiose marble group and some of its influence can be found in his works.
Art historians Johann Joachim Winkelmann and Gotthold Ephraim Lessing wrote extensively about the Laocoon.
One more reason to enjoy one of the many Vatican tours is certainly the Statue of Laocoon.
Nowadays the Laocoon can be admired in the Vatican Museums in Rome.
There are many companies organizing Vatican tours that will include the visit to the Vatican Museums and the Laocoon, like Easy Vatican Tour.
The Laocoon was probably made between 42 and 20 BC by three sculptors from the Mediterranean island of Rhodes: Athenodorus, Agesander and Polydorus, but we don't know if it is their original creation or a copy of an earlier work.
The Roman author Pliny the Elder described the Laocoon "a work to be preferred to all that the arts of painting and sculpture have produced".
Based on his account, the statue was located in the palace of the emperor Titus.
Thanks also to Pliny's description, the marble group was known in the ancient times but it was actually rediscovered only in 1506, when it was unearthed in a vineyard near the "Domus Aurea" in Rome.
Michelangelo was present at the excavation, that became an extremely popular event in the Rome of the Renaissance time.
The Laocoon was bought by Pope Julius II and placed in the courtyard of the Belvedere Garden at the Vatican where people started to come to see all its beauty and it is thus considered the foundation of the Vatican Museums.
The statue was took away by Napoleon in 1799, and placed in the Louvre until 1815 when it came back to Rome after the end of the Napoleon regime.
The work describes the myth of Laocoon, a Trojan priest who tried to prevent the Trojan horse to enter inside the city walls.
Because of this, Poseidon, god of the sea, sent sea serpents to kill Laocoon and his sons Antiphantes and Thymbraeus, as narrated in Virgil's "Aeneid".
At the time of the discovery, the right arms of the Laocoon and of one of his sons were missing.
After an extensive cultural debate about the original position of the arms, it was decided to restore them with the arms extended outwards, although Michelangelo believed the Laocoon's arm was bent backward over the shoulder.
In 1906 an archaeologist found a marble arm during an excavation, and thought it had some resemblance with the Laocoon Group.
He gave the marble piece to the Vatican and it was found out that it belonged to the Laocoon.
After several years, in 1950, the statue was restored again and the arm replaced in the original shape.
Over the centuries since its discovery, the Laocoon has greatly influenced many sculptors, artists and scholars.
Michelangelo was very impressed by the power of this grandiose marble group and some of its influence can be found in his works.
Art historians Johann Joachim Winkelmann and Gotthold Ephraim Lessing wrote extensively about the Laocoon.
One more reason to enjoy one of the many Vatican tours is certainly the Statue of Laocoon.
Nowadays the Laocoon can be admired in the Vatican Museums in Rome.
There are many companies organizing Vatican tours that will include the visit to the Vatican Museums and the Laocoon, like Easy Vatican Tour.
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