Nike of Samothrace statue 23.5 cm, 14.2 cm deep, 10 cm wide, 0.67 kg, black artificial marble base
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Original representation, Louvre Paris
Nike of Samothrace is the name given to a Greek sculpture,
which depicts the goddess of victory Nike and is now a centrepiece of the Louvre in Paris. It was found in the sanctuary of the Kabirs on the Greek island of Samothrace. It was probably created around 190 B.C. It is assumed that Rhodian sculptors created the statue from white marble from the island of Paros.
The statue was probably used as a victory monument as thanks for the naval victory over Antiochus III of Syria. This is why it stands like a figurehead on the bow of a ship. The entire statue is 328 cm high, although the figure itself is 245 cm tall.
Incidentally, the Louvre refers to this outstanding exhibit as the Victory of Samothrace, which is of course not correct because the statue is clearly of Greek origin and cannot be equated with the Roman goddess of victory Victoria in this context. Perhaps the intention is to disguise the fact that
that the amateur archaeologist Charles Champoiseau discovered this statue in 1863 and illegally brought it to Paris.
This product was added to our catalog on Thursday, January 2, 2025.