Townley Discobolus, London, British Museum, with incorrectly restored head defying the balance of the figure

The Discobolus of Myron ("discus thrower" Greek Δισκοβόλος του Μύρωνα) is a famous Roman marble copy of a lost Greek bronze original, completed during the zenith of the classical period between 460-450 BC. Myron's Discobolus was long known from descriptions: Myron was a Greek sculptor of the middle 5th century BC. He was born at Eleutherae on the borders of Boeotia and Attica. ... Statue of discus thrower in Botanic Garden, Copenhagen, Denmark Alternate meaning: Discus fish The discus throw is an athletics (track and field) throwing event. ...

"When you came in the hall," he said, "didn't you notice a totally gorgeous statue up there, by Demetrios the portraitist?" "Surely you don't mean the discus-thrower," said I, "the one bent over into the throwing-position, with his head turned back to the hand that holds the discus, and the opposite knee slightly flexed, like one who will spring up again after the throw?"

"Not that one," he said, "that's one of Myron's works, that Diskobolos you speak of..." (Lucian of Samosata, Philopseudes c. 18)^[1]

Its discovery in 1781, at a Roman property of the Massimo family^[2] who installed it initially in their Palazzo Massimo delle Colonne then at Palazzo Lancelotti, made it instantly famous, though the Massimo jealously guarded access to it (Haskell and Penny 1981:200). A discus thrower is depicted about to release his throw. The moment captured in the statue is an example of rhythmos, harmony and balance. Myron is often credited as being the first sculpture to master this style. Naturally, as always in Greek athletics, the Discobolus is completely naked. His pose is said to be unnatural to a human, and today considered a rather inefficient way to throw the discus. Also there is very little emotion shown in the discus thrower's face. The other trademark of Myron depicted in this sculpture is how well the body is proportioned, symmetria. Lucian of Samosata (c. ... Statue of discus thrower in Botanic Garden, Copenhagen, Denmark For alternate meanings, see Discus. ... It has been suggested that Naked hiking be merged into this article or section. ...

Discobolus of Myron in the Botanical Garden of Copenhagen, Denmark, with correctly restored head

After the discovery of this Discobolus Palombara other Roman copies in marble have been recovered, and torsoes that were already known in the seventeenth century, but had been wrongly restored, have been identified as further repetitions of the model (Haskell and Penny 1981:200). Image File history File linksMetadata Download high resolution version (1944x1944, 670 KB) Краткое описание Statue of discus thrower in Botanical Gardens, Copenhagen, Denmark. ... Image File history File linksMetadata Download high resolution version (1944x1944, 670 KB) Краткое описание Statue of discus thrower in Botanical Gardens, Copenhagen, Denmark. ... Copenhagen (IPA: , rhyming with pagan (the way the Danes themselves pronounce the name of the capital in English), or , with a as in spa; Danish   IPA: ) is the capital of Denmark and the countrys largest city (metropolitan population 1,211,542 (2006)), at present made up of 16 municipalities. ... Venus de Milo, front. ...

The sculpture was instantly famous. In 1937 Adolf Hitler negotiated to buy it, and eventually succeeded in 1938, when Galeazzo Ciano, Minister of Foreign Affairs, sold it to him for five million lire, over the protests of Giuseppe Bottai, Minister of Education, and the scholarly community. It was shipped by rail to Munich and displayed in the Glyptothek; it was returned in 1948. Hitler redirects here. ... Galeazzo Ciano. ... Giuseppe Bottai (b. ... This article is in need of attention. ...

Prior to the statue's discovery the term Discobolus had been applied in the seventeenth and eighteenth centuries to a standing figure holding a discus (compare Discophoros), which Visconti identified as the Discobolus of Naukydes of Argos, mentioned by Pliny (Haskell and Penny 1981:200). The Discophoros, also spelled Discophorus, meaning Discus-Bearer is one of the figures in according to the Classical Greek sculptor Polyclitus. ... Naturalis Historia Pliny the Elders Natural History is an encyclopedia written by Pliny the Elder. ...

Examples of the Discobolus of Myron include:

• Discobolus Palombara now in the Museo Nazionale Romano, Rome. The Italian archeologist Carlo Fea identified the sculpture as a copy from the original of Myron.
• two copies found at Tivoli, 1791, one acquired by the Vatican Museum, the other bought by Charles Towneley and is now in the British Museum, London. The head was wrongly restored, as Richard Payne Knight pointed out, but Townley was convinced his was the original and better copy.
• a copy discovered in 1906 in the ruins of a Roman villa at Tor Paterna in the royal estate of Castel Porziana, now also in the Museo Nazionale Romano.

Museum in Rome, split between various branches across the city // Crypta Balbi Museum of Medieval Rome, medieval remains, history of the site, and remains of the Theatre of Lucius Cornelius Balbus (minor) in Campus Martius Palazzo Altemps Palazzo Massimo Baths of Diocletian (main) Epigraphic museum Octagonal Aula of the Baths... Carlo Fea (2 February 1753 - 18 March 1836) was an Italian archaeologist. ... Tivoli usually refers to: Tivoli, Italy, an ancient Roman (now Italian) town, the first bearer of the name Tivoli Tivoli Systems, Inc. ... Categories: Stub | Vatican City ... Much of the following text is taken from the public domain Encyclopedia Britannica 1911, as such it may contain errors and inaccuracies Charles Towneley (1737-1805), English archaeologist and collector of marbles, was born at Towneley, the family seat, near Burnley in Lancashire, on the ist of October 1737. ... The centre of the museum was redeveloped in 2000 to become the Great Court, with a tessellated glass roof by Buro Happold and Foster and Partners surrounding the original Reading Room. ... Richard Payne Knight (15 February 1750 - 23 April 1824) was a Classical scholar and connoisseur best known for his theories of picturesque beauty and for his interest in ancient phallic imagery. ... The Roman Empire contained many kinds of villas. ... Museum in Rome, split between various branches across the city // Crypta Balbi Museum of Medieval Rome, medieval remains, history of the site, and remains of the Theatre of Lucius Cornelius Balbus (minor) in Campus Martius Palazzo Altemps Palazzo Massimo Baths of Diocletian (main) Epigraphic museum Octagonal Aula of the Baths...

Notes

1. ^ The Lucian reference and Quintillian, ii.13.xviii-x, are noted by Haskell and Penny 1981:200.
2. ^ It was found at the Villa Palombara on the Esquiline Hill. It was initially restored by Giuseppe Angelini. The Discobolus Palombara stands 1.55m.

Quintillian, Marcus Fabius Quintillianus (c. ... The Esquiline Hill is one of the famous seven hills of Rome. ...

References

• Francis Haskell and Nicholas Penny, 1981. Taste and the Antique: the Lure of Classical Sculpture 1500-1900 (Yale University Press) Cat. no.32.

External Links

• Skulpturhalle, Basel (German)