"Made of fine-grained white marble, it dates to the 2nd century A.D. and its exceptional quality and condition make one of the most important archaeological discoveries ever made in Pula. The sculpture was discovered last week on Castropola Street in the historic center of the city. It was found inside a room of an ancient domus. The room had collapsed, but archaeologists found huge amounts of marble pieces, and the remains of wall and ceiling frescoes decorated in polychrome paint."
"The sculpture found in the collapse layer is 98 cm (38.6 inches) long, 44 cm (17.3 inches) wide and 30 cm (11.8 inches) high at its highest point. It depicts Cupid as a nude winged boy on his side sleeping on a lion skin, his head resting on the lion's head. This is a reference to the story of Cupid stealing Hercules' Nemean lion skin, a metaphor for how desire can conquer strength."
"There are about 200 marble sleeping Cupid sculptures similar to this one known. Only about 25 of them include lizards, an animal that symbolizes regeneration and new life. There is some damage to the piece, likely suffered in antiquity: one of the wings is broken off Cupid's back and there's a crack in the oval base that run diagonally from edge near Cupid's knee clean through to the lion skin's foot on the other side."
A rare, nearly complete 2nd-century A.D. sleeping Cupid statue in fine-grained white marble was discovered in Pula, Croatia. The sculpture measured 98 cm by 44 cm by 30 cm and was recovered inside a collapsed room of an ancient domus on Castropola Street. The figure shows a nude winged boy sleeping on a lion skin with his head on the lion's head and a small lizard beside him, referencing Cupid stealing Hercules' Nemean lion skin and symbolizing desire overcoming strength and regeneration. The piece shows ancient damage and blackening from fire, and is undergoing laser cleaning and conservation before museum display.
Read at www.thehistoryblog.com
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