Torso of a Man

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Torso of a Man, 1st-2nd century A.D. Marble 136.8 x 59.7 x 49.5 cm (53 7/8 x 23 1/2 x 19 1/2 in.) (with base) Gift of Mr. and Mrs. Edwin E. Hokin, 1972.1231 Ancient and Byzantine Art Gallery 152 Well-to-do Roman men began representing themselves as Greek mythological heroes starting in the 1st century A.D. These portraits combined a muscular, youthful body with a more mature, realistic portrait head to equate an individual's achievements and admirable qualities with those of their favored hero. This statue likely alludes to Diomedes, who played a pivotal role in the Trojan War by stealing the Palladium, a wooden image of the goddess Athena thought to protect the city of Troy from danger. Permanent collection label http://www.artic.edu/aic/collections/artwork/41506?search_no=1&index=2 As featured in this School of the Art Institute of Chicago faculty profile: http://vimeo.com/84259836 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vecOBFDgKNs&feature=youtu.be