Laocoön and His Sons

A masterpiece of Hellenistic "baroque" dynamism, this monumental marble group captures the agonizing demise of the Trojan priest Laocoön and his sons. Strangled by sea serpents as divine punishment, their contorted forms and visceral expressions epitomize human suffering. Unearthed in 1506, the sculpture profoundly influenced Renaissance masters like Michelangelo, serving as a definitive archetype of anatomical precision and emotional pathos in Western art. It remains a cornerstone of the Vatican’s collection and a pinnacle of classical aesthetic achievement.

Found 1506 in the vineyard of Felice de Fredis on the Oppian Hill, Rome; purchased by Pope Julius II; Vatican Museums (1506–present).