Читать книгу The Mythology of Greece and Rome, With Special Reference to Its Use in Art онлайн

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In existing art monuments sometimes the conception of a warlike, vengeful deity obtains, in which case the god is represented as nude, or nearly so, and armed with quiver and bow. At other times he wears a mild and benevolent aspect; he is then distinguished by his lute, and completely enveloped in a chlamys. Of the former kind is the most beautiful and celebrated of all his existing statues, the Apollo Belvedere, which was discovered in 1503, near Nettuno, the ancient Antium, and is now in the Vatican. The proud self-consciousness of a conquering deity is inimitably expressed in his whole attitude. He stands with his right hand and leg against the trunk of a tree, his left arm outstretched, with the ægis, probably as a symbol of fear and terror, in his hand. The serpent creeping up the tree is a symbol of the powers of darkness vanquished by the god (Fig. 11). It may also be taken as the symbol of life and healing, like the serpent of Asclepius (see p. 96). We have also given a larger engraving of the head of the Belvedere Apollo, in order to afford a clearer idea of its wondrous beauty (Fig. 12).