Hercules - Maincy, France
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denben
N 48° 33.399 E 002° 42.943
31U E 479023 N 5378211
Giant Farnese Hercules located at the far end of the park of the château de Vaux-le-Vicomte in Maincy, France.
Waymark Code: WMEH70
Location: Île-de-France, France
Date Posted: 05/30/2012
Views: 9
This monumental reproduction of the famous Farnese Hercules in gilded lead measures 7 meters high. Hercules is depicted leaning on his knobby club and holding the apples of the Hesperides in his right hand, but he conceals them behind his back like a baseball pitcher with a knuckleball.
The Farnese Hercules is one of the most famous sculptures of Antiquity, and has fixed the image of the mythic hero in the European imagination. It quickly made its way into the collection of Cardinal Alessandro Farnese, grandson of Pope Paul III. Alessandro Farnese was well placed to form one of the greatest collections of classical sculpture that has been assembled since Antiquity.
Hercules is the Roman name for the Greek demigod Heracles, who was the son of Zeus the Father of Gods and men, and the mortal Alcmene. In classical mythology, Hercules is famous for his strength and for his numerous far-ranging adventures.
The Château de Vaux-le-Vicomte is a baroque French château located in Maincy in the Seine-et-Marne département of France. It was built from 1658 to 1661 for Nicolas Fouquet the superintendent of finances of Louis XIV.
Open daily from March to November from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. and during Christmas Holidays
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