CIRCA 1ST CENTURY A.D. AFTER THE ORIGINAL OF CIRCA 440 B.C.

Polykleitos was one of the most famous and influential Greek sculptors of the High Classical Period. A native of Argos in the Peloponnesus, his artistic career flourished circa 450-420 B.C. The Doryphoros or Spearbearer, and several other of his works are described in ancient literature and are recognized in surviving Roman copies, including the Diadumenos or Filletbinder, and the Kyniskos, identified as the Westmacott Athlete since the 19th century. His Amazon of Ephesus was famed for having been chosen in a competition over works by the sculptors Pheidias and Kresilas, while his most magnificent creation was said to be the colossal gold and ivory cult statue of Hera from the Heraeum of his native Argos. Pliny tells us that Polykleitos wrote about his theories of rhythm and proportion. This sculptural Canon emphasized the juxtaposition of antithetical pairs, such as right and left, straight and curved, relaxed and tensed, rest and movement. The Doryphoros is considered the embodiment of Polykleitos' Canon. The sculpture's fame and popularity with the Romans is confirmed by the large number of surviving marble copies of the now-lost bronze original.

See Beck, Bol, Bückling, Polyklet, Der Bildhauer der griechischen Klassik, in particular, von Steuben, "Der Doryphoros" in that publication; and Moon, ed., Polykleitos, the Doryphoros, and Tradition.