| Collection: | Museum of Fine Arts, Boston |
| Title: | Herakles from Sparta |
| Context: | Possibly from Sparta |
| Findspot: | Said to be found at Sparta |
| Summary: | Idealized male face, wearing a lion's-head scalp |
| Sculptor: | In the style of Lysippos |
| Material: | Marble |
| Sculpture Type: | Free-standing statue |
| Category: | Separated fragments |
| Style: | Late Classical/Hellenistic |
| Original or Copy: | Original |
| Date: | ca. 325 BC |
| Dimensions: | H. 0.24 m |
| Scale: | Life-size |
| Region: | Laconia |
| Period: | Early Hellenistic |
Subject Description: The identification as Herakles is assured because of the (Nemean) lion's-scalp helmet, which was Herakles' life-long attribute after he defeated the Nemean lion. The likeness of the face to that of the idealized Alexander the Great, sculpted by Lysippos, has encouraged scholars to interpret this piece as a portrait of Alexander in the guise of Herakles.
Condition: Single piece
Condition Description: Only the front of the head, i.e. the face, the front of the helmet, and some intervening hair, have been preserved. The front left of the lion's maul is missing. The surface is slightly pockmarked on the left and marred with dark gray adhesions on the right.
Technique Description: Given the state of this piece it is unclear whether this head was originally sculpted in high relief or in the round.
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