Statue of the Diadoumenos (youth tying a fillet round his head)
Around 100 BC.
ΝΑΜ, Γ 1826
The young athlete ties a victor’s fillet (band) round his head, a victory that has raised him to the sphere of the gods, as indicated by the Apollonian features of his face. The extended arms and the gilding that once decorated the statue enhance the uplifting quality of this artwork. Marble copy of the similarly called famous bronze statue that the sculptor Polykleitos created around 420 BC, emboding the athletic ideal.