A Roman marble figure of Leda and the swan, 100-200 A.D.
Conservation: Good condition. Sculpture fragment
Material: Marble
Dimensions: 20 cm
Provenance: European private collection, acquired at auction, Nürnberg, Germany, late 1990s / Acquired at Christie’s, London, Auction, 2008
Exhibited: Feriarte, IFEMA (Madrid, 16-24 November, 2019)
Published: Antiquities, Londres. Christie´s. 30/10/2008
Price:
2500€
This fully classical sculpture represents the young and beautiful Leda naked at the waist, dressed with a chiton that covers only her legs. She appears carrying a swan, representing Zeus, in an affectionate and erotic gesture. The story of Leda and the swan comes from Greek mythology. She was the wife of Tindarus, King of Sparta. One day while walking along the Eurotas River, after having sex with her husband Tindar, Leda was seduced by Zeus who presented himself in the form of a swan, something he often did in order to have sex with women. From these relationships, she had four children, two from her mortal husband Tindar and two from the god Zeus. It is a rarely depicted motif, but very recurrent in Renaissance painting.
