Athena Velletri

The Statue of Athena Velletri

Title

Pallade di Velletri (Pallas of Velletri).

Subject

The Goddess held spear and phiale (the hands are restored), wears a brief aegis (most of it hangs behind her), snaky belt, himation (mantle) over the peplus (dress) with long overfall, and a Corinthian helmet.

Function

The original is often now taken as the cult statue which stood beside Hephaestus in his Temple at Athens.

Date

This copy is from the 1st cent. CE and the original from about 420-410 BCE.

Artist

The original is associated with Alcamenes (pupil of Phidias), otherwise with Cresilas for the facial resemblance to his statue of Pericles.

Context

Velletri (anc. Velitrae), the birthplace of Augustus, 40 km south of Rome, Italy.

Findspot

When sculptor Berthel Thorvaldsen, accompanied by painter Rhoden and the critic of art Carl Ludwig Fernow, in November of 1797, entered the hall of De Santis family home, in Troncavia district at Velletri, remained in ecstasy. The 59 fragments of the statue of Pallas Athena who had been found again hardly two months before in the land of De Santis, were in good state of conservation much "to be recognizable with easy".

Original/Copy

This statue is a roman copy after a greek bronze original. There is red color in the hair, around the eyes and mouth. Part of the helmet, the right forearm, the hands, the feet and part of the mantle are restored.

Other Copies

Several other copies of this size, and reduced copies, are known.

• A second large-scale copy, the so-called "Atena della Centrale", can be found in the Montemartini Museum, Rome.
• The Statue of Athena (Velletri type) in the Martres Tolosane Museum, France.
• The Bust of Athena in the Glyptothek, Munich.
• The Bust of Athena in the National Archaeological Museum, Athens.
• The Bust of Athena in the British Museum, London.
• The Bust of Athena in the Antikenmuseum, Basel.

Material and Dimensions

Marble with H. 3.05 m

Collection

Paris, Musée du Louvre, Ma 464.

Gallery

Velletri front	Velletri right	Velletri left
Bust front	Bust front eyes	Bust right
Face front	Face front eyes	Face right
Face right eyes	Legs front	Feet right
Velletri front study	Velletri front stick	Right study
Velletri left study	Bust front study	Bust right study
Face proportions	Legs front study	Feet right study

Tourist Information

This statue is exposed in room 15, collection of Greek Antiquities, department of Greek, Etruscan and Roman Antiquities, Groung Floor, Denon access, Louvre Museum, Paris, France.

Due to lack of staff, the Louvre museum cannot maintain all of its rooms permanently open. A week-by-week schedule specifies which collections are open or closed on each day of the week. This information can be consulted at the Pyramid entrance, at the information desk or on the Internet (www.louvre.fr/en). Follow the links 'Visit' -> 'List of available galleries'.

Other Views

• Velletri Athena - Roman copy after an original, perhaps by Kresilas, ca. 430 BCE

Links

• Wikipedia: Athena of Velletri.
• Perseus Project: Velletri Athena, Pallas of Velletri. (Munich.), VELITRAE (Velletri) Italy.
• Montemartini Museum: "Atena della Centrale".
• Martres Tolosane Museum: Statue of Athena (Velletri type).
• Antikenmuseum Basel: Bust of Athena.

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