Spear carrier. Many copies were made by the Romans of this male nude, the Greek bronze original of which is lost. This particular copy retains the distinctive half-standing, half-walking pose, but has been restored inaccurately with a discus in his right hand. He originally would have held a spear in his left hand, resting on his shoulder.
The fame of Polykleitos was acknowledged as early as the thirteenth century, but the Doryphoros was not recognised as being by the sculptor until 1863, despite being excavated in the previous century
Rome, Vatican, Braccio Nuovo 126
Purchased in 1884 from Malpieri of Rome
Lippold: Griechische Plastik, 164
Richter: Sculpture & Sculptors of the Greeks (1950), 247-
Walston: Catalogue of Casts in the Museum of Classical Archaeology (1889), 64, no.282
Lawrence: Classical Sculpture (1928), 211-
Moon (ed.): Polykleitos, the Doryphoros and Tradition
In the Vatican by 1822
