Double Head of Hermes at The Réunion des Musées Nationaux, Paris

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Excavations in 1970 uncovered a Roman district of Fréjus known as Le Clos de la Tour, Insula I, near a large building with peristyle and exedras. This marble duo-bust is an exceptional discovery among the relatively abundant yet usually mediocre series of Hellenistic and Roman depictions of Double-Hermes sculptures. The artist skillfully combined two rural divinities crowned with flowers between them. On one hand, a young Fauna characterized by attributes and goats, whose features show a sports temperament and mischievous spirit without excessive blame, is depicted. The other figure is a bearded Hermes or Dionysus, imbued with Olympian majesty, whose look "unfathomable" is highlighted by an archaic kouros smile. One can recognize in this group both severe and playful Hermes-Pan dyad, country gods confused in Latin countries with Terminus and Faunus, poorly distinguished, moreover, Priape and Sylvain. The Homeric Hymn to Pan (XVII) and Herodotus (II, 145-146) Goat make a son of Hermes. This close relationship and very similar pastoral functions have favored the meeting on one of the two main pillars Arcadian gods. However, the frequent confusion since Antiquity between closely related types of Dionysus and Hermes has led to some doubt. It lacks only Dionysus, for preferring to Hermes, the ivy wreath that usually distinguishes the gods in procession with a long beard. Anyway, Latin taste for "Janus", a happy archaic mode, and recovery of festivals crossroads (compitales) by Augustus have endorsed pretty much the choice of association and beautiful style of this sculpture . Imported to Fréjus, Forum Julii, one of the doors of the Gauls, this work of art could decorate the garden of a rich villa urbana, unless it belonged to a public building, palaestra or market. Heiress, in many ways, to the purest Hellenic tradition, it lacks in truth a Greek signature. The sculpture has no signature and the sculptor is unknown but believed to have been created in the style of Augustus. 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 public access 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.