Statue of Hercules strangling the Nemean Lion, Piazza Ognissanti

The statue of Hercules Strangling the Nemean Lion is a bronze statue located in the Piazza Ognissanti, overlooking the Arno river in Florence, region of Tuscany, Italy.

Statue in Piazza Ognissanti

History and description

The first bronze statuettes on this subject were completed and exhibited by the Florentine sculptor Romano Romanelli in 1906-1910.[1] Romanelli became a prominent sculptor for the Fascist administration of Benito Mussolini. In 1930, the fascist authorities removed the statue of the Venetian-Italian patriot, Daniele Manin, from the center of this piazza, where it had been placed, and installed it in the suburbs of Arcetri. In its place, the Jewish-Italian patron, Angiolo Orvieto commissioned this statue,[2] placed here in 1937 after display at the exhibition of the Quadriennale d'Arte Nazionale in Rome.[3] A casting of this statue was also exhibited in Berlin in 1937, where it was prominently placed at the entrance of the exhibition alongside a photograph of Mussolini and Victor Emmanuel III of Italy.[4] The statue has remained in Piazza Ognissanti since installation.

The classical allusions match the animus of the age to recall and emulate Ancient Roman glories, and it also recalls the Roman Wrestlers sculpture in the Uffizi Gallery. However, the statue may have been favored given Mussolini's identification with Hercules, and focus on the subjugation of Africa and the incorporation of large tracts of the continent into his Italian empire.

The statue of Manin remained in exile for over half a century in Piazzale Galilei; however, Manin the patriot was no stranger himself to exile, and lived nearly a decade in France.

References
  1. Encyclopedia Treccani, Enciclopedia Italiana (1936) by Mario Tinti.
  2. The Florentine, article on Hercules and the lion, by Deirdre Pirro (issue no. 178/2013 / February 28, 2013)
  3. II Quadriennale d'Arte Nazionale al palazzo delle Esposizioni di Roma
  4. Italian wikipedia: Mostra di arte italiana dal 1800 a oggi.

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