L.Barlow - A2 Classical Civilisations
Metopes on the West Side - Olympia
The Nemean Lion
- 1st Labour of Heracles
- Young Heracles - no beards
- Depicted after the victory, resting and exhausted
- An ‘after’ snapshot
- Athena comforts him
- What remains?
• Athena
• Heracles
• Nemean Lion
- Hermes is present along with Athena for in the myth they were sympathetic towards
Hercules and helped him when he needed it
- More interesting than older style Metopes
- Excellent detail on the hair of Athena
- Most of it is missing, but you can still see how some parts are completely cut from the
back stone
- Composition:
• Unusual- does not show moment of height of struggle. Here the struggle is over.
Lion lies dead at the bottom of the metope
• Heracles placed foot on it, but not adopting triumphant pose: rests elbow on knee
and head on hand. Exhausted
• Downcast eyes
• Furrowed forehead
• Athena stands by looking on sympathetically
• Fragment of foot suggests that Hermes also present [NB Athena and Hermes are
the children of Zeus]
• Heracles = youth, beardless. Perhaps also daunted by struggle lying before him
1
Metopes on the West Side - Olympia
The Nemean Lion
- 1st Labour of Heracles
- Young Heracles - no beards
- Depicted after the victory, resting and exhausted
- An ‘after’ snapshot
- Athena comforts him
- What remains?
• Athena
• Heracles
• Nemean Lion
- Hermes is present along with Athena for in the myth they were sympathetic towards
Hercules and helped him when he needed it
- More interesting than older style Metopes
- Excellent detail on the hair of Athena
- Most of it is missing, but you can still see how some parts are completely cut from the
back stone
- Composition:
• Unusual- does not show moment of height of struggle. Here the struggle is over.
Lion lies dead at the bottom of the metope
• Heracles placed foot on it, but not adopting triumphant pose: rests elbow on knee
and head on hand. Exhausted
• Downcast eyes
• Furrowed forehead
• Athena stands by looking on sympathetically
• Fragment of foot suggests that Hermes also present [NB Athena and Hermes are
the children of Zeus]
• Heracles = youth, beardless. Perhaps also daunted by struggle lying before him
1
