Calamis (5th century BC) in the context of "Alexicacus"

⭐ In the context of Alexikakos, Calamis (5th century BC) is primarily known for his work with what subject matter?

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⭐ Core Definition: Calamis (5th century BC)

Calamis (fl. 5th century BC) was a sculptor of ancient Greece. He was possibly from Boeotia, but nothing certain is known of his life although he is credited with having lived in Athens, and his sculptures are representative of Athenian sculpture. Although none of his works survives, he is known for his talent and skill in sculpting animals, especially horses, as opposed to the human body. He is known to have worked in marble, bronze, gold, and ivory, and was famed for statues of horses, which Pliny says were unrivaled.

According to Pausanias (9.16.1), Calamis produced a statue of Zeus Ammon for Pindar, and mentions a Hermes Criophorus for Tanagra (9.22.1), which was later depicted on Roman coins of the city. His statue of Apollo Alexikakos stood in front of the Temple of Apollo Patroos in Athens. He produced his most ambitious work, a 30-cubit statue of Apollo for Apollonia Pontica (on modern St. Ivan Island, Bulgaria; Pliny the Elder 4.92, 34.39, Strabo 7.6.1, p. 319). His Sosandra was praised by Lucian, and may have been copied for Aspasia, which in turn was copied by the Romans.

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👉 Calamis (5th century BC) in the context of Alexicacus

Alexikakos (Ancient Greek: Ἀλεξίκακος), the "averter of evil", was an epithet given by the ancient Greeks to several deities such as Zeus and Apollo, who was worshipped under this name by the Athenians, because he was believed to have stopped the plague which raged at Athens in the time of the Peloponnesian War. It was also applied to Heracles.

There is a statue of Apollo in the Museo delle Terme in Rome, a Roman copy of a Greek original, that is thought to be a copy of the statue of Apollo Alexicacus by Calamis that stood in the Ceramicus of Athens.

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