Eros of Centocelle

Praxiteles made a large bronze sculpture known as the Eros of Thespiae, which Pliny says was in Rome by the time he was writing, the first century CE, and since when it has disappeared. It was no doubt during its time in Rome that it inspired several Roman copies, of which this is one example.

Eros was the child of Aphrodite, and is often shown as a winged youth or later, a small child. In this sculpture he would probably have held a bow. This cast is missing the legs of the original in Rome

Number

229

Material

Marble

Location of Original

Rome, Vatican, Galleria delle Statue 250

Size

0.85m

Accession

Signed by the Micheli Brothers of Berlin

References

Lippold: Griechische Plastik, 264 (n.11)
Walston: Catalogue of Casts in the Museum of Classical Archaeology (1889), 79, no.374(?)
Picard: Archéologie Grècque; Sculpture III (1948), 450, fig.181, pl. 8
Amelung: Catalogue of the Vatican Museum II (1908), 408-, pl. XLV
Lawrence: Classical Sculpture (1928), 249-

Date

C1 CE. Original: C4 BCE

Sculptor

Of original: School of Praxiteles

Provenance

Found at Centocelle on the outskirts of Rome by Gavin Hamilton in the late eighteenth century

Search Casts

Museum of Classical Archaeology, Cambridge

Every cast tells two stories.
One ancient. One modern.

Admission is free.

Opening hours

Tues-Fri: 10-5pm
Sat: 2-5pm (Univ. term-time only)
Sun & Mon: Closed

Closed on Bank Holiday Mondays

Visit us

Museum of Classical Archaeology
Faculty of Classics
Sidgwick Avenue
Cambridge
CB3 9DA

Get in touch

Tel. +44 (0)1223 330402
Email museum@classics.cam.ac.uk
Join our mailing list

For an explanation of what personal information we gather when you visit the University’s website and details of how that information is used please see the following University Privacy policy:

https://www.cam.ac.uk/about-this-site/privacy-policy

Copyright statement

All images and material on our websites are ©Museum of Classical Archaeology, University of Cambridge unless otherwise stated. Please contact us to reproduce our images using a CC BY-NC-ND 4.0 licence.

Important Information

Museum of Classical Archaeology Web Accessibility Statement