Nike of Samotraki with mounted wings

Nike of Samothrace. Classic statue. The Nike of Samothrace is a statue dating back to 190 BC. It is one of the main works of the Louvre Museum in Paris. Nike, according to Greek mythology, was a young winged goddess, daughter of the titan Pallas and the nymph Styx. The Greeks revered Nike as the personification of victory in sports and war. The statue was an offering to the Greek gods in exchange for protection at sea. In fact the translation of the name in Italian is Vittoria. The statue of Samothrace is depicted as the figurehead of a warship. It seems that the goddess arrived in flight on the bow of the boat as the wind animates the chiton and inflates the feathers of the wings. Her forward position with spread wings and her chiton moving in the wind refer in fact to a marine context. The particular and unique shape taken by Nike mutilates instead of representing a defect, it has favored its great notoriety. In fact she has become a truly classic and artistic icon.

The statue is incomplete: head, arms and feet are missing. It was made of Parian marble. The goddess wears a long tunic with attention to the smallest details, with a folded flap and a belt under the chest. The lower part of her body, however, is covered by a thin cloak, it gives the sensation that she is about to fall and it is only “the force of the wind”. The sculptor worked a lot on the draping effect, mixing areas where the fabric “merges” on the body, highlighting the forms of the goddess, and other parts where the folds accumulate, producing effects of light and shadow. Its total beauty and notoriety allowed it to be made in terracotta in a single dimension, modeled and created in high relief, taking into account all the proportions and characteristics of the classical statue.

The shape remains unchanged over time. Frost resistant to over -30°C with excellent durability. Handmade with Impruneta clay. As the seasons pass, it acquires a beautiful superficial appearance.

Technical information: the statue is made in three parts, the body and the two wings. The wings must be fixed with concrete or suitable material on site. We also supply terracotta colored mixture for surface finishing.