Photos of the Very Rare Ancient Greek Riace Bronzes Statues

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Photos of the Wonderful Very Rare Ancient Greek Riace Bronzes Statues, Museo Nazionale della Magna Grecia, Reggio Calabria. Photos by photographer Paul E Williams. (TIP – use the icons below the slideshow for thumbnail photos and info)

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Photos of the Very Rare Ancient Greek Riace Bronzes Statues

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Photos of the wonderful Riace Bronzes Greek statues cast about 460 BC. Riace is a sea side town 80 km (50 miles) north of Reggio Calabria where in 1972 two full sized bronze warrior statues were found in shipwreck under the sea.

Finding the Riace Bronzes

The discovery of the Ancient Greek bronze statues at Riace was an astounding find 2400 years after they had been lost in a shipwreck. They were either discovered by a chemist Stefano Mariottini whilst snorkelling, or, more like by four young teenagers from Riace. Either way the discovery of these very very rare Greek Bronze statues in tact was incredible.

As Bronze was a valuable metal in antiquity, very few Ancient Greek Bronze statues have survived. Bronze is not corroded by the sea so in recent time, with better surveying equipment, more Ancient Greek wrecks have been found.

Conserving the Riace Bronzes

The Riace bronzes statues went through 9 years of conservation during which time every aspect of the statues was investigated using the latest scientific methods. This has given archaeologists deeper understanding of how the Greeks made such incredible bronze statues.

Who Sculpted the Riace Bronzes

It is not fully known the purpose of the Riace Bronzes but academics believe that Statue A was probably sculpted by Myron and statue B was made by Phidias. The style of the Riace statues straddles the archaic period and heralds the start of the classical period. Both statues depict strong young naked warriors who stand calmly but exuding great power.

Artistic Style of the Riace Bronzes

In the Archaic Period, 200 years before the Riace Bronzes were made, Kouros (Youth or Boy) sculptures were typical. Kouros stand straight and static looking forwards with no expression on their faces. Even though there is a hint of the Archaic Period in the Riace Bronzes unlike the Kouros there is a sense of movement. The Riace Bronzes have their legs bent as if they are about to take a step and their heads are turned which accentuates a sense of anticipation as if they are looking for something they have on their faces.

The anatomical detail is extraordinary which gives a startling realism to the statue and demonstrate the high level of skill of the Greek sculptors of this period. This style was then adopted by the Romans who spread it across their Empire and was rediscovered again during the Renaissance and has been the bench mark of high art ever since.

Nazionale della Magna Grecia

The Riace Bronzes are exhibited in the newly constructed the Museo Nazionale della Magna Grecia in the southern Italian City of Reggio Calabria, Italy. Housed in a temperature controlled gallery that has been made earthquake proof, they are now safe for generations to come.