Creative Commons License
Creative Commons License
Creative Commons License
Statuette of a Boxer
(Ancient Greece )
This exquisitely modeled boxer demonstrates the sculptor's ability to realistically render the athletic physique. The figure also reveals the level of excellence Hellenistic artists achieved in small-scale sculpture. The athlete's hands are wrapped with leather thongs, the Greek equivalent of boxing gloves, and he holds a sponge. Lamps that burned olive oil would have been suspended from chains at each corner of the base. Boxing was a popular and violent contest in which almost any blow was permitted, including eye-gouging.
Provenance
Provenance (from the French provenir, 'to come from/forth') is the chronology of the ownership, custody, or location of a historical object. Learn more about provenance at the Walters.
Joseph Brummer, New York and Paris, 1924, by purchase [Brummer inv. no. N665]; Henry Walters, Baltimore, 1924, by purchase; Walters Art Museum, 1931, by bequest.
Exhibitions
| 1988-1989 | From Alexander to Cleopatra: Greek Art of the Hellenistic Age. The Walters Art Gallery, Baltimore. |
| 1983 | Transformations in Hellenistic Art. Mount Holyoke College Art Museum, South Hadley. |
| 1983 | Designed for Use: Ancient Industrial Arts. The Walters Art Gallery, Baltimore. |
Conservation
| Date | Description | Narrative |
|---|---|---|
| 4/1/1982 | Treatment | cleaned; examined for loan |
| 12/8/1982 | Examination | examined for loan |
Geographies
Greece (Place of Origin)
Measurements
10 13/16 x 3 15/16 x 3 9/16 in. (27.5 x 10 x 9 cm)
Credit Line
Acquired by Henry Walters, 1924
Location in Museum
Accession Number
In libraries, galleries, museums, and archives, an accession number is a unique identifier assigned to each object in the collection.
In libraries, galleries, museums, and archives, an accession number is a unique identifier assigned to each object in the collection.
54.1006