This relief, originally the front of a sarcophagus, is of unknown provenance and was walled into the east facade of the Palazzina, known as the Prospettiva, along with the back of the same sarcophagus in the sixteenth century. It was later moved to storage. Restored by Antonio D'Este and Massimiliano Laboureur in 1826, it was then hung, again with the back, on two facing walls in Room II. Six twisted columns with composite capitals divide the space into five compartments, filled with five of the twelve labours that Eurystheus imposed on Hercules. From the left, the hero defeating the Nemean lion the nine-headed Hydra of Lerna the wild boar of Mount Erymanthus capturing the Ceryneian hind and bringing it to Eurystheus and the birds from the Stymphalian marshes. This iconographic theme enjoyed particular popularity in the Roman world, especially on Attic and Asiatic sarcophagi. The labours of the civilising hero alluded to the hard work of the deceased while living, earning him eternal glory and immortality.
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