Hercules and the Hydra

This lead statue of Hercules fighting a stone headed hydra with a wooden club stands at the east end of the top terrace of Powis Castle garden.

The fine statues at Powis were made in the workshop of Flemish John van Nost at the time the terraces were being created.  The Hercules is signed by Andries Carpentiere, one of van Nost’s leading craftsmen.  With the Fame and Pegasus, now in the courtyard, it probably once stood in the former water garden.*

Hercules

Hydra

*From the Powis Castle garden guidebook.

19 Comments CherryPie on Apr 7th 2012

19 Responses to “Hercules and the Hydra”

  1. Chrissy says:

    Superb photo’s. I haven’t been to Powis in ages, I love the Magnolia in the background too.

  2. A wonderful classical statue!

  3. CrashRyan says:

    they sure knew how to make statues back then !!!

  4. Sean Jeating says:

    What mighty a ‘hero’ … :)

  5. Claude says:

    WOW! I would feel safe with such a mighty man guarding my land. Don’t see too many these days…unless in stone! ;-) Great photos, Cherie.

    • CherryPie says:

      Such mighty heros seem a thing of the past. But there again I think the girls these days wouldn’t appreciate them so much… so the hero’s are a dying breed ;-)

  6. Mickie Brown says:

    Cherie, What a beautiful statue–you keep traveling to such interesting places and sharing such lovely posts. Hope you have a blessed and happy Easter, my friend. Mickie :)

  7. There’s also a Hercules statue in Gibraltar, overlooking the Strait of Gibraltar.
    Oh I miss their apes. ;)

  8. Andrew says:

    Hercules’ pose reminds me a bit of the end of my golf swing… The comparison ends there however.

  9. Andrew says:

    And he was taking a risk of a nasty bite fighting that toothy hydra bare naked. Brave but silly, I’d suggest. Maybe the hydra caught him unawares in that state of undress, or maybe he just liked to walk about like that and show off. (Don’t know much about Hercules. Is that a skinned dog he’s got on his head? What a guy…).

    • CherryPie says:

      With a bit of luck next time I encounter a hydra you be nearby with your golf club. I did wonder about his state of dress, perhaps he was woken up from his slumbers and was sleeping that rather strange garb he has on his head!

  10. james higham says:

    I’m just wondering if the wooden club was the best weapon for the job?

    • CherryPie says:

      It doesn’t seem sturdy enough to me, but then these legendary heroes seem to manage all sorts of unrealistic feats of prowess.