Apollo of Piombino at The Louvre, Paris

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The Apollo of Piombino or Piombino Boy is a renowned Greek bronze statuette in late Archaic style that depicts the god as a kouros or youth. Alternatively, it may be a worshipper bringing an offering. The bronze features intricate copper inlays for the boy's lips, eyebrows, and nipples. His eyes, which are missing, were likely made of bone or ivory. In 1832, this remarkable artifact was discovered at Piombino (Roman Populonia) in Etruria, nestled in a harbor off the southwest point. It was subsequently purchased by the Musée du Louvre in 1834. Scholars such as Reinhard Lullies and Max Hirmer were led to date it in the 5th century BCE due to its archaic style, placing its creation in Magna Graecia - the Hellenic culture area of southern Italy. Kenneth Clark featured it in The Nude (1956), while Karl Schefold included it in Meisterwerke Griechischer Kunst (1960). Casts of this masterpiece were found in university and museum study collections, including one made by the Louvre that has been returned to Piombino. However, B.S. Ridgeway proved it to be a consciously fabricated Roman forgery, with a false inlaid inscription of silver in archaic lettering on the left leg. The inscription dedicates this Apollo to Athena, an anomaly that defies explanation. The two sculptors responsible for this deception could not resist concealing their names inside the sculpture on a lead tag. This was discovered when the sculpture underwent conservation in 1842. One of the sculptors was a Tyrian émigré to Rhodes. The Louvre's website notes that a comparable work uncovered in 1977 in Pompeii, in the villa of C. Julius Polybius, corroborates the hypothesis of an archaising pastiche made for a Roman client in the 1st century BCE. The study of ancient Greek sculpture has evolved significantly over the last few decades. Instead of relying on brief literary descriptions and attempting to recognize the characteristic manner of famous sculptors, scholars now focus on the socio-political world in which these artworks were created and other less subjective criteria. This shift in approach has shed new light on the creation and significance of ancient Greek sculptures like the Apollo of Piombino. This object is part of "Scan The World". Scan the World is a non-profit initiative introduced by MyMiniFactory, through which we are creating a digital archive of fully 3D printable sculptures, artworks, and landmarks from across the globe for the public to access for free. Scan the World is an open source, community effort. If you have interesting items around you and would like to contribute, email stw@myminifactory.com to find out how you can help.