Hercules and Lichas
Giovanni Folo
1812
Medium
engraving
Dimensions
475; 621
About this artwork
gravure
Art Historical Context
**Hercules and Lichas is a striking 1812 engraving by Folo, capturing a dramatic moment from classical Greek mythology. In the myth, the hero Hercules, driven mad by the agony of a poisoned tunic delivered unwittingly by his messenger Lichas, hurls the hapless figure into the sea. Folo's composition, measuring 621mm high by 475mm wide, the neoclassical fascination with ancient tales of heroism and tragedy, popular during the Napoleonic era when Europe revered Greco-Roman narratives as symbols of moral and physical power. Rendered in the meticulous medium of engraving—known as *gravure* in Fre...