A roman marble head of Hercules, circa 2nd century A.D.

The hero depicted youthful, his oval face inclined to his left, with a bulging forehead and contoured brows overhanging deep-set, unarticulated, almond-shaped eyes, his lips parted, his hair a mass of closely-cropped short wavy locks brushed up at the forehead and bound in a thin diadem, with curving locks on his cheeks in front of his small ears. 12 in. (30.4 cm.) high. Estimate $25,000 - $35,000 - Price Realized $158,500

Provenance: Edward Moss, Augusta, Georgia; Parke-Bernet, New York, 24 January 1969, lot 176.
with Blumka Gallery, New York.
Henry E. Schnakenberg, bequested 1971.

Notes: There are a number of surviving Roman depictions of the youthful hero, all inspired by Greek statuary of the 4th century B.C. For related treatment of the hair and face see the various versions of the Albertini Herakles, nos. 302-303, and the Lansdowne Herakles, no. 689 in Boardman, "Herakles," in LIMC.

Christie's. Antiquities. 3 June 2009. New York, Rockefeller Plaza www.christies.com