The Hermes of Praxiteles

Extract

To the discussion conducted during 1931, in the pages of The American Journal of Archaeology, regarding the authenticity of this work Prof. W. B. Dinsmoor made an important contribution, in which he pointed out marked technical differences between the style of the pedestal in front of which the statue was found and that of pedestals of the second century A.D., to which some would assign the work. In his opinion the pedestal dates from the second century B.C., a period hardly possible as the date of the statue itself; the inference being that during that century the statue had been transferred from its original position to the place in the Heraeum where it was found. I suggest that the occasion of the transfer was the receipt, in 146 B.C., at Olympia of intelligence of Mummius' proceedings at Corinth. He in fact treated Olympia well, dedicating gilded shields on the temple of Zeus and images of Zeus from the spoils of Achaea, in addition to other gifts. But the authorities may reasonably not have anticipated such treatment from him, and have decided that removal to the Heraeum, the oldest temple at Olympia, offered the best chance of preserving the statue.