THE DYING GAUL
Top 3 in Top 17 Best Sculptures of All Time
The original sculpture is said to have been created in 230BC to commemorate Attalus I's victory over the Gauls of Turkey. The current form is a marble replica of an older bronze sculpture that has since been lost to history. The original work's creator is unknown, although historians assume it was created by Epigonus, a court sculptor at the time. The statue, which shows a man dying from a sword wound to the chest, has received accolades for its authenticity and representation of anguish.
Until the twentieth century, it was considered that the statue depicted a gladiator, but closer investigation revealed that the person had the characteristics of a Gaul, including the hairdo and mustache, as well as a torc around the neck.
