Lot 53

FAWN OF HERCULANEUM

This is a faithful copy of an ancient preserved statue from the 1st century BC, currently located in the National Archaeological Museum in Naples, probably from the turn of the 19th and 20th centuries. The lightness and delicacy of the workmanship are the characteristic features of the pair of fawn sculptures found in Herculaneum in 1756. These were two statues that were originally part of the Villa dei Papiri sculpture complex, an aristocratic residence located outside the urban area of ancient Herculaneum near Pompeii. The fawn motif was associated with Dionysus, as the god and his followers wore its skin. The fawn is depicted in life size with remarkable realism: its head raised, its face tilted to the left, its ears pricked up to listen.