Analysis of The Famous Sculpture, Laocoön and his Two Sons

The piece I decided to analyze is the famous sculpture, Laocoön and his two sons. I decided on this particular piece for a few reasons, one being the emotion we see on the subjects’ faces, and the other being the importance for future art. When I began this research I could not have possibly understood the relevance this piece had on the art that was yet to come.

The Hellenistic period of Greek art spans from the time of Alexander the Great’s death in 323 to 30 B.C.E. (“Hellenistic Period” 1). However there have been controversies of precisely how long the Hellenistic period lasted. Some argue that from C. 400; to the first century can be classified as “Pre-Hellenistic” (Janson 138-139). “Hellenistic, is a term meant to convey the spread of Greek civilization southeastward…” (Janson 138). However, within this broad range of Hellenistic art, there are sub categories. In 240 B.C.E, a new age of Hellenistic art came into focus, this was the Hellenistic “Baroque” period, this period of art introduced not only the full three dimensional quality of sculpture, but also sculpture in motion. They loved portraying not only struggles and violent action, but they also began to portray the ugly, and the old.(“Hellenistic Period” 1).

Laocoön and his two sons were found in 1506 on the Esquiline Hill in Rome (“Musei Vaticani – sito ufficiale”). When it was found Pope Julius the second, recognized it by the description he had seen in the writings of Pliny the Elder. This allowed the pope to recognize that the sculptors were Agesander, Athenodorus, and Polydorus of Rhodes. (Janson 147). The pope decided to display this piece along with others in what was once called the Cortile delle Statue, but what is now called the Octagonal Court inside ...

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...earn these things. How Laocoön and his two sons tell the story of Rome’s creation, and how they influenced the greatest artist of all time which in turn influenced one of his greatest creations.

Works Cited

Janson, H.W , and Anthony Janson. History or Art. Third Edition ed. New York: Harry N. Abram's Inc., 1986. Print.

"Musei Vaticani - Sito ufficiale." Musei Vaticani - Sito ufficiale. N.p., n.d. Web. 17 Apr. 2014. .

Sporre, Dennis J.. Reality through the arts. 8th ed. Hong Kong: Pearson Education, Inc., 2013. Print.

“The Hellenistic Period.” Arts and Humanities Through the Eras. Ed. Edward l. Bleiberg, et al. Vol.2: Ancient Greece and Rome 1200 B.C.E.-476 C.E. Detroit:Gale, 2005. 420-425. Student Resources in Context. Web. 17 Apr. 2014.

“The Vatican: spirit and art of Christian Rome”.. New York: Metropolitan Museum of Art :, 1982. Print.