Fragment of Diadoumenos at The Louvre, Paris

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This marble fragment of a sculpture is known as the Diadoumenos, literally translating to 'someone who attached a headband around the front', a practice done by those after a victory in an athletic contest. It is a first-century A.D. Roman copy of a Greek bronze original dated around 430 B.C. The original bronze likely stood proudly in a sanctuary such as that at Olympia or Delphi, where games were regularly held. Ancient literary accounts (Lucian, Philopseudes, 18; Pliny, N.H. xxxiv, 15) and over forty known copies confirm the original bronze was one of the most highly esteemed creations of Polykleitos, a renowned Greek sculptor from Argos who worked during the mid—fifth century B.C. Both in his sculpture and in written texts, Polykleitos sought to represent the nude male figure with perfect harmony among all parts and according to principles that can be easily reproduced by others. He carefully designed his figures with special attention paid to bodily proportions and stance, resulting in a whole that is uniquely harmonious. The thorax and pelvis of the Diadoumenos tilt in opposite directions, setting up rhythmic contrasts in the torso that create an impression of organic vitality. The position of the feet poised between standing and walking gives a sense of potential movement. This rigorously calculated pose, which is found in almost all works attributed to Polykleitos, became a standard formula used in Greco-Roman and later western European art.