Marble statue of a lion, ca. 400–390 B.C.

Greek

Marble statues of lions were sometimes used as tomb monuments or as guardians at both ends of a large tomb facade. Like many classical Greek works of art, this statue was taken to Rome during the imperial period.

 

               

For this assignment, I went to the Metropolitan Museum of Art to fulfill my quest for a lion. In the Greek and Roman Art section, I found a marble statue of a lion in the middle of the gallery. The lion was hard to miss because it was the centerpiece of the room, attracting attention to all the visitors, including me. The statue was created during the Classical Period of Greece and its purpose, according to the museum, was to either guard tombs or act as tomb monuments. I was surprised by the size and physique of the lion statue because real lions are bigger, muscular, and their features resemble the feline family. This statue, however, had a smaller stature and pretty bony. The face of the statue is also very sharp and angular, resembling a dog. I also observed the position of the lion and tried to anticipate the actions of the lion that the sculptor wanted to depict. It was interesting in that the lion had its mouth open, looking upwards like it was looking at someone. The statue also bent its front body like it was about to pounce on the person it was looking at. I concluded that the sculptor of this lion wanted the statue to act as a tomb guardian, ready to defend the tomb against any disturbers. In light of this hypothesis, I assume the lion was more dog-like to symbolize its domestic role of guarding something, like a dog guarding a house.