Gruppo statuario di nudi maschili: BONACOLSI, "Ercole ed anteo" -- all'antica

Speranza



ERCOLE ED ANTEO, Palazzo Pitti.


At the end of the fifteenth century one antique group in Rome was specially admired.

The group represents ERCOLE ED ANTEO. It stood in the Cortile delle Statue della Villa del Belvedere, sul colle Vaticano, a Roma.

The group offered the CLASSICAL solution to one of the central problems by which modelators were faced.

In this spirit, BONACOLSI studied it, but he introduced TWO changes into the 'design'.

FIRST, BONACOLSI accented the PYRAMIDAL stance of ERCOLE and modified ANTEO's legs till they conformed with it.

SECOND, BONACOLSI showed the agonised head of ANTEO turned BACK in such a way that it forms the EMOTIONAL and visual CLIMAX of the group.