''Jason with the Golden Fleece'' is a

sculpture Sculpture is the branch of the visual arts that operates in three dimensions. Sculpture is the three-dimensional art work which is physically presented in the dimensions of height, width and depth. It is one of the plastic arts. Durable sc ...

Bertel Thorvaldsen Bertel Thorvaldsen (; 19 November 1770 – 24 March 1844) was a Danes, Danish and Icelanders, Icelandic Sculpture, sculptor medallist, medalist of international fame, who spent most of his life (1797–1838) in Italy. Thorvaldsen was born in ...

. A lifesize clay version created in 1803 is considered to be the artist's first great work. The larger marble statue, reaching a height of , was however not completed until 1828.

History

The sculpture expresses the principle themes of the Ancient Greek myth of

Jason Jason ( ; ) was an ancient Greek mythological hero and leader of the Argonauts, whose quest for the Golden Fleece featured in Greek literature. He was the son of Aeson, the rightful king of Iolcos. He was married to the sorceress Medea. He w ...

recounted by the Alexandrian poet

Apollonius of Rhodes Apollonius of Rhodes ( grc, Ἀπολλώνιος Ῥόδιος ''Apollṓnios Rhódios''; la, Apollonius Rhodius; fl. first half of 3rd century BC) was an ancient Greek author, best known for the ''Argonautica'', an epic poem about Jason and t ...

, about a hero who traveled on a voyage in search of the

Golden Fleece In Greek mythology, the Golden Fleece ( el, Χρυσόμαλλον δέρας, ''Chrysómallon déras'') is the fleece of the golden-woolled,, ''Khrusómallos''. winged ram, Chrysomallos, that rescued Phrixus and brought him to Colchis, where P ...

in an attempt to help his father recover his kingdom from King

Pelias Pelias ( ; Ancient Greek: Πελίας) was king of Iolcus in Greek mythology. He was the one who sent Jason on the quest for the Golden Fleece. Family Pelias was the son of Tyro and Poseidon. His wife is recorded as either Anaxibia, daughter ...

. A vase painting of Jason from the 3rd century BC depicts Jason removing the Golden Fleece from the sacred tree. Thorvaldsen's work was initially executed for the Copenhagen Academy to demonstrate his progress; a marble version was subsequently commissioned by Thomas Hope, a wealthy English

art patron Art is a diverse range of human activity, and resulting product, that involves creative or imaginative talent expressive of technical proficiency, beauty, emotional power, or conceptual ideas. There is no generally agreed definition of what ...

. When Hope's eventual heirs dispersed his collection at

Deepdene, Surrey Dorking () is a market town in Surrey in South East England, about south of London. It is in Mole Valley, Mole Valley District and the non-metropolitan district, council headquarters are to the east of the centre. The High Street runs roughl ...

, in 1917, it was acquired by

Copenhagen Copenhagen ( or .; da, København ) is the capital and most populous city of Denmark, with a proper population of around 815.000 in the last quarter of 2022; and some 1.370,000 in the urban area; and the wider Copenhagen metropolitan ar ...

Thorvaldsen Museum The Thorvaldsen Museum is a single-artist museum in Copenhagen, Denmark, dedicated to the art of Danish Neoclassical sculptor Bertel Thorvaldsen (1770–1844), who lived and worked in Rome for most of his life (1796–1838). The museum is locat ...

at auction.

The work

Considered to be Thorvaldsen's breakthrough work, the statue's theme stems from a drawing of ''Jason and the Golden Fleece'' by

Asmus Jacob Carstens Asmus Jacob Carstens (or "Jakob", May 10, 1754May 25, 1798) was a Danish-German painter, one of the most committed artists of German Neoclassicism. His career was erratic, partly because of his difficult personality, and the majority of his la ...

but the esthetic of the nude figure is also inspired by the

Apollo Belvedere The ''Apollo Belvedere'' (also called the ''Belvedere Apollo, Apollo of the Belvedere'', or ''Pythian Apollo'') is a celebrated marble sculpture from Classical Antiquity. The ''Apollo'' is now thought to be an original Roman creation of Hadrianic ...

and

Doryphoros The ''Doryphoros'' (Greek Δορυφόρος Classical Greek , "Spear-Bearer"; Latinised as ''Doryphorus'') of Polykleitos is one of the best known Greek sculptures of Classical antiquity, depicting a solidly built, muscular, standing warrior, o ...

, both from antiquity; the archaeologist

Georg Zoëga Jørgen Zoëga (20 December 1755 – 10 February 1809) was a Danish scientist. He was noted for his work as an archaeologist, numismatist and anthropologist. Biography Jørgen (Georg) Zoëga was born at Daler parish in Tønder Municipal ...

also played an important role, expanding Thorwaldsen's knowledge of ancient history and culture.Stig Miss, "Bertel Thorvaldsen"
''Kunstineks Danmark & Weilbachs kunstnerleksikon. Retrieved 21 January 2013.

Danish Culture Canon

In the first decade of the 21st century, the work was included in the semi-official

Danish Culture Canon The Danish Culture Canon ( da, Kulturkanonen) consists of 108 works of cultural excellence in eight categories: architecture, visual arts, design and crafts, film, literature, music, performing arts, and children's culture. An initiative of Brian ...

. In selecting the work, the Culture Canon committee commented on Thorvaldsen's white, sharp, intense and rhythmic lines, evoking a distant, heroic figure. At the time Thorvaldsen created the statue, Denmark was evolving from absolute monarchy into a period of liberalism revolving around the individual citizen's view of the world. Similarly, the sculptor brings his monumental works down to an individual level. His first model of the statue (in clay) was completed in 1803. The marble version followed in 1828."Jason med det gyldne skind"
, Kulturkanonen. Retrieved 21 January 2013. In the statue, Jason appears to be frozen somewhere between rest and movement. The fight is won and he is returning home with his prey over his arm. Expressing both physical and mental calm, he is the prototype of the classical hero. The sculpture is fully balanced: no matter where your eyes fall, you can find a corresponding element. For example, the lance is reflected in the chest strap, the fleece in tree stump. and the curled tip of the helmet in the horns of the ram.

References

External links

References
to the sculpture in the Thorvaldsen Archive. {{Argonautica 1803 in Denmark 1803 sculptures Cultural depictions of Jason Danish Culture Canon Marble sculptures in Copenhagen Sculptures by Bertel Thorvaldsen Sculptures in the Thorvaldsen Museum Sculptures of classical mythology Sculptures of men in Copenhagen Works about the Argonauts