Two monumental artworks from a Roman-era estate in Greece are revealing how one of antiquity’s richest men may have used art to express identity, grief and memory. A new study of the sculptures at Herodes’ Greek villa suggests the works formed a carefully planned display that connected famous Greek myths with the personal world of Herodes Atticus.
The research, led by Rebecca Levitan, examines sculptures and mosaics from Herodes’ villa at Loukou in the Peloponnese. Herodes lived from 101 to 177 CE and was a wealthy Athenian teacher, politician, and public benefactor. A major figure of the Second Sophistic, Herodes promoted classical Greek culture while living under Roman rule. His fortune funded monumental projects across ancient Greece.
Colossal sculptures dominated the villa
Herodes extensively renovated the Loukou estate between about 135 and 174 CE. Archaeologists have uncovered roughly 6,500 square meters (70,000 square feet) of a complex estimated to have covered about 20,000 square meters (215,000 square feet). A large garden formed the heart of the villa. Covered walkways, mosaics, water features, and dozens of statues surrounded it.
Levitan focuses on two colossal marble sculptural groups once displayed near the western end of the garden. Both were Roman copies of celebrated Hellenistic Greek bronze compositions. Roman copies helped preserve the appearance of many ancient Greek sculptures whose originals were lost.
Each group stood more than 2.45 meters, or about 8 feet, tall. One survives and shows Achilles supporting the dying Amazon queen Penthesilea. According to versions of the story of Achilles and Penthesilea, Achilles killed her in battle but fell in love with her as she died.
The second sculpture is lost. Historical descriptions and archaeological evidence indicate that it belonged to the type known as the “Pasquino Group.” Levitan argues that the Loukou version likely represented Ajax carrying the dead Achilles from the battlefield.
Mosaics mirrored the famous sculptures
The surviving Achilles and Penthesilea sculpture is notable for its size and exceptional detail. Achilles supports the collapsing Penthesilea while turning his head away. The sculptor carefully carved the muscles and veins of Achilles’ hands and details of Penthesilea’s footwear. Achilles also wears a helmet decorated with a bird-of-prey crest, a feature not known from other surviving Roman copies of the composition. But the sculptures were only part of the display.
A colorful mosaic beside the Achilles and Penthesilea group showed the same scene. Across the garden, another mosaic depicted the composition associated with the lost Pasquino sculpture. Levitan argues that each monumental sculpture was therefore paired with a mosaic version of the same scene. A water channel running through the garden may have added another layer by reflecting the statues. The arrangement allowed visitors to encounter the same mythological scenes in sculpture, mosaic and reflection.
Greek myths may have carried a personal message
Levitan argues that the choice of subjects may also help explain what Herodes wanted the display to communicate. Both sculptural groups center on Achilles and explore violence, death and mourning. Such themes would have been familiar to educated visitors who knew Greek literature. They may also have carried personal meaning for Herodes.
His wife, Regilla, died while pregnant in 160 CE. Her brother later accused Herodes of responsibility through the actions of a freedman. Herodes was tried and acquitted. Herodes also lost several children and favored students. He commemorated some of them with statues and other memorials.
Levitan proposes that the Loukou display may have encouraged visitors to compare those losses with tragedies from Greek myth. However, no surviving ancient text explains why Herodes selected these particular sculptures, so the personal connection remains an interpretation.
What is clearer is the deliberate nature of the display. Two colossal mythological groups faced one another across the garden, while mosaics repeated their stories below. The arrangement turned famous Greek artworks into more than decoration. It created a setting where visitors could compare heroism, violence, death, and loss. The study suggests that Herodes used the villa’s art to display his knowledge of Greek culture while creating a visual narrative that may also have reflected his own experiences of mourning and remembrance.
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