The Infant Hercules Strangling the Serpents

Master of the Labours of Hercules, Verona (?)

model after 1506 (possibly cast 19th century) · Copper alloy covered with a layer of tin or another soldering material. · Robert Lehman Collection

This plaquette is attributed to the anonymous follower of Moderno, named “Master of the Labours of Hercules.” The composition is linked to antique medals from Samos, but the medalist also seems to have been influenced by the famous Laocoön group. The year of its discovery in Rome (1506), provides a terminus post quem for the plaquette. The unusual tin patina and the striations on the blank reverse strongly suggest a late date for this object, possibly in the nineteenth century.

Artist

Master of the Labours of Hercules, Verona (?)

Date

model after 1506 (possibly cast 19th century)

Medium

Copper alloy covered with a layer of tin or another soldering material.

Department

Robert Lehman Collection

Credit line

Robert Lehman Collection, 1975