“Hercules and the Centaur Nessus”
“Hercules and the Centaur Nessus” is a marble statue by the Flemish-Italian artist, Giambologna. It was made between 1595 and 1599. Giambologna worked in the Mannerism, or Late Renaissance, art style that was popular in Italy during the mid to late sixteenth century.
This sculpture was commissioned in 1594 by the Grand Duke of Tuscany, Grand Duke Ferdinand I, born Ferdinando De’ Medici. It was originally placed on a pedestal at the crossroads of Canto dei Carnesecchi in Florence, Italy. It remained there until 1842 when it was moved to its current location.
In Greek mythology, Nessus’s father, Centauros, was killed by Hercules. In revenge for his father’s death, Nessus attempted to kidnap Hercules’s wife. He was caught in the act and killed, the scene which is depicted here. As tragedy would have it, Nessus had tainted blood, which was used to poison and kill Hercules in turn just several years later.
Giambologna was following the grand footsteps laid down by Michelangelo a century earlier. Notice the contrast in the facial expressions of Hercules with the wild centaur, who has already been struck down but is not yet defeated. This is thought to have been inspired after the famous sculpture by Baccio Bandinelli titled “Hercules and Cacus”. Giambologna tried to create a more dynamic version of the epic ending of the fight between Hercules and the Centaur, Nessus.
“Hercules and the Centaur Nessus” is on display at the Loggia dei Lanzi in the Piazza della Signoria in Florence, Italy.
For more on Giambologna, please visit his short biography here.
You can find more artists to learn about here.
