Hermarchus was a Greek philosopher of the early third century BCE, pupil of Epicurus. He was from Mytilene, the main city on the east Aegean island of Lesbos. In 270 BCE he moved to be head of the Epicurean school in nearby Lampsacus, on the Asiatic side of the Hellespont, or Dardanelles, in modern Turkey. We know the names of his major works, but none has survived.
This cast is of a Roman copy of the prototype. It is recognised as Hermarchus owing to its likeness to an earlier bronze portrait, with the philosopher’s name inscribed on its base, found in Herculaneum
Number:
504
Material:
Marble
Location of Original:
Athens, National Museum 368
Size:
0.57m
References:
Lippold: Griechische Plastik, 314 (n.14)
Hekler: Greek and Roman Portraits, pl. 102
Date:
Mid second century CE
Provenance:
Found in Athens
