Gaul or Giant

Fairfield University's plaster cast of the Gaul or Giant from the Lesser Attalid Dedication is traditionally dated to 150 B.C.E., however, an earlier date of ca. 200 B.C.E. has also been proposed. This sculptural group was erected in front of the Acropolis as a commission by Attalos, the ruler of Pergamon. Known as the Lesser Attalid Dedication, each sculpture in the group commemorates a great Greek victory both mythological and historical. Figures represent the war of the Giants, the battle against the Amazons, the deed of the Athenians at Marathon, and the defeat of the Gauls in Mysia.

The style of the Lesser Attalid Dedication perpetuates the style of the larger Attalid figures from the Great Altar at Pergamon. Each of the figures in the Dedication is approximately two-thirds life-sized, emphasizing his or her ultimate defeat. Fairfield's cast of a Gaul or giant is even smaller, standing only 2'6" tall. Twelve different sculptures of Gauls have been attributed to the Lesser Attalid Dedication; thus, if there were equal numbers of Giants, Persians and Amazons, as art historians suggests there were, the Lesser Attalid Dedication may have well contained more than 50 sculptures.

The Gaul or Giant lies on its side after being defeated, its head hung back and its mouth agape in pain. While the head and torso of Fairfield's Gaul are largely intact, the lower portions of the limbs of the cast are no longer preserved. A complete cast of the Gaul is held in the plaster cast collection at Cornell University; a Roman copy of the original is housed in Venice, Italy.

T.L.