Today is Art Day Statue, Winged Victory

Dimension: 17w x 14d x 23.5cmh

About Winged Victory of Samothrace
A majestic example of Hellenistic sculpture, the Winged Victory of Samothrace, also known as the Nike of Samothrace, is one of the Louvre’s most treasured masterpieces.

The 8-foot (244-cm) statue made of white Paros marble represents Nike, the goddess of Victory, about to alight on a ship whose sailors have just won a sea battle.

Created in about 2nd century BC, this marble masterpiece is one of the few surviving examples of original Hellenistic sculpture.

Winged Victory is one of the rare Greek statues whose exact original location is known. Discovered in 1863 on the Greek island of Samothrace in the Aegean Sea, the statue was broken and incomplete. Some 110 fragments were excavated, with no sign of her head nor her arms.

While there have been many attempts to find her missing appendages, only part of Winged Victory’s right hand has been discovered. Displayed in a showcase near the statue, her 27-cm hand turns its palm upward, in a sign of victory.