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| The Winged Victory of Samothrace, Estimated: 323 BCE-31 CE, Artist Unknown |
The Winged Victory of Samothrace, also known as the Nike of Samothrace, is a Hellenistic marble sculpture of the Greek Goddess Nike sculpted around 190 B.C.E,. Standing 18 feet tall, she is depicted standing in triumph at the bow of a ship, the marble appearing to be cloth clinging to a wet body. Like other statues sculpted during this time period, there is an intense focus on realism, making you believe that the sculpture was moving and halted in time. Analyzing the sculpture, you will find that her weight looks naturally distributed on her legs, a classical depiction of vigor and triumph that you see in Hellenistic sculptures. Ninety years after discovering the statue, a piece of her hand was found. Archaeologists believed her hand would be in a fist as if holding something but instead, her hand was opened and extended looking as if greeting someone. Despite this, it is believed to be a sculpture to commemorate a successful sea battle on the island of Rhodes given the way her body stance is depicted, wide-winged, and dramatically stepping forward. Before being excavated, this statue stood proudly on the Greek island, Samothrace, in the northern Aegean Sea, over an artificial lake (for a more dramatic effect). This island was the home of Poseidon during the Trojan War, leading the people to view it as a safe haven from the dangers of the sea. To ensure their protection, the Samothrace people built a sanctuary for the gods, erecting sculptures of several sea oriented sculptures such as the Winged Victory, important ships from battles, and even columns with sea-like decoration on them. Knowing this, we are provided an insight into how the ancient world viewed the Samothrace people. Because of the Samothrace's written history of being visited by gods, large city projects were carried out on the island, and Greek-ambassadors were allowed to permanently reside on the island and carry out the wills of the people during the Roman occupation during the time. Not only was it a very important sculpture during the time of creation, but it still is an important sculpture today, holding a piece of remembrance for eternity. The sculpture now is visited by over 15,000 people a day and sits in the Louvre museum in Paris, France.
Sources:
Cartwright, Mark. “Samothrace.” Ancient History Encyclopedia. Ancient History Encyclopedia, July 7, 2016. https://www.ancient.eu/Samothrace/.
Richman-Abdou, Kelly. “This Armless Sculpture Is One of the Louvre's Most Treasured Masterpieces.” My Modern Met, September 8, 2020. https://mymodernmet.com/winged-victory-of-samothrace/.
The British Museum, "Ancient Greece, an introduction," in Smarthistory, February 28, 2017, accessed September 11, 2020, https://smarthistory.org/ancient-greece-an-introduction/.
Luna, thank you so much for sharing this piece! I am stunned by its beauty. I am most amazed at how this creating this sculpture were able to create the wet cloth out of marble!!!!
ReplyDeleteGreat job Luna! I had never heard of the Greek goddess Nike before now. The Greeks definitely had a knack for capturing the realistic appearance of the human form. In my research, I came to find that a lot of pieces from the Hellenistic period involve the impression of a lot of movement. While this piece doesn’t have that exact feeling, it does hold a lot a power by the figures stance, specifically with her legs!
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