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Open 10:00–5:00

Visit
Open today 10:00 a.m.–5:00 p.m.
Admission is always free

6th and Constitution Ave NW
Washington, DC 20565

Sculpture Garden Extended Hours

Open late until 8:00 p.m. on select nights
Through September 5
Exhibitions & Events
America’s 250th

Celebrating American art and artists
Art & Artists
Open Call

Artists Reimagining the Collection
Meet the 50 makers selected from more than 1,600 submissions

Hercules Supporting the Heavens

1640/1650

Ferdinando Tacca, probably after a model by Pietro Tacca

Associated Names

Ferdinando Tacca

Artist, Florentine, 1619 - 1686

Pietro Tacca

Artist After, Florentine, 1577 - 1640

The sculpture depicts a muscular male figure in a bent-over position, supporting a large globe on his shoulders. The figure is nude, emphasizing the detailed musculature and physical strain of holding the globe, which is textured with decorative bands. The sculpture is made from a dark bronze material. The man is depicted in a dynamic pose, with one knee slightly bent and the other leg forward. The sculpture stands on a rocky base.

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Artwork overview

Medium

bronze
Credit Line

Gift of Robert H. Smith/Robert H. Smith Collection
Dimensions

height: 89 cm (35 1/16 in.)
Accession Number

2022.181.45

Artwork history & notes

Bibliography

2004

Radcliffe, Anthony and Nicholas Penny. Art of the Renaissance Bronze, 1500-1650. London, 2004: 234, 254-259, repro. no. 45.

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