Art Institute of Chicago
Head of Mars
RomanLinkedCulture matchlcp-e70b76de214d
- Date
- 2nd century
- Medium
- Marble
- Culture
- Roman Empire
- Department
- Arts of Greece, Rome, and Byzantium
- Institution
- Art Institute of Chicago
- Object ID
- 102074
From the Art Institute of Chicago record
Mars, the Roman god of war, was viewed as both a warrior and a guardian of the Roman people. He is identified by his distinctive helmet, which is richly carved with imagery reflecting his martial role. The sides depict griffins, winged beasts associated with his vengeful nature, while the cheek pieces are each adorned with an image of Cupid carrying a spear and shield. Mars had a complicated romantic rela-tionship with Cupid’s mother, Venus, the Roman goddess of love, whose domain also included warfare and military victory.
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Provenance & credit
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- Credit line
- Katherine K. Adler Memorial Fund
- Provenance
- Wilheim Flender (1888-1972), Siegen, Germany, from about 1930 [this and the following according to correspondence in curatorial object file]; Mohammed Yeganeh, Frankfurt, Germany, by 1980; sold to the Art Institute, 1984.
Linked open data
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- Object type
- AAT300301253
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