Nile, Ancient marble statue in Museo Chiaramonti, Vatican City.
The Nile statue portrays an elderly man holding wheat and a cornucopia, standing about 165 centimeters tall and spanning roughly 310 centimeters wide. The work features a sphinx as its support and was carved from marble.
The work was found in 1513 at Campo Marzio, where it decorated the Iseo Campense temple dedicated to the Egyptian deities Isis and Serapis. The statue shows how Romans integrated Egyptian traditions into their own artistic language.
The base shows reliefs with children, pygmies, hippopotamuses and crocodiles in a Nile landscape. These details tell of how Romans understood the river's importance in Egyptian life.
The statue is located in the Museo Chiaramonti within the Vatican Museums and is easy to reach. Allow time to explore the collection, as it holds many works from ancient Rome.
The statue displays exotic animals like hippopotamuses and crocodiles not native to Europe, surprising visitors with its detailed portrayal of distant cultures. This blend of classical Roman sculpture and Egyptian iconography was highly valued in ancient Rome.
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