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Hercules and Cacus
In 1583, a marble statue group with the broken, entwined torsos of two muscular wrestlers was discovered in Rome. Sculptors tried to imagine compositions that would complete them, one being the struggle of Hercules and the evil giant Cacus, slain by Hercules after he stole the hero's cattle. The subject fascinated Florentine sculptors after Michelangelo explored it in the early 1500s. In the 1580s, Giambologna, the Flemish sculptor who achieved such success in Florence, made a set of bronze statuettes of the twelve Labors of Hercules for the Medici duke Francesco I, including Hercules wrestling with Cacus. Casts after these were made for decades and in varying quality. There were a number in the Southern Netherlands in the 1600s. This group appears to have been influenced by both the ancient marble and Giambologna's bronzes.
Provenance
Provenance (from the French provenir, 'to come from/forth') is the chronology of the ownership, custody, or location of a historical object.
Henry Walters, Baltimore, 1912 [mode of acquisition unknown]; Walters Art Museum, 1931, by bequest.
Exhibitions
| 1995 | The Allure of Bronze. The Walters Art Gallery, Baltimore. |
| 1971-1972 | World of Wonder. The Walters Art Gallery, Baltimore. |
Geographies
Italy, Rome
(Place of Origin)
Italy, Florence (Place of Origin)
Measurements
H: 15 11/16 in. (39.8 cm)
Credit Line
Acquired by Henry Walters, 1912
Location in Museum
Not on view
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.
54.248