The Nemean Boxer Creugas
Charles Francis Summers (1857-1945)
Marble
1883
Height: Two metres (78 inches)
Royal Botanic Gardens, Sydney, New South Wales, Australia.
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The marble figure of Creugas, like that of Damoxenos on the other side of the marble staircase at the Morshead Fountain Gate on Macquarie Street, is ready to fight: according to Greek legend, these demigods met in the ring at the Nemean Games in a match that dragged on for hours, so evenly matched were they. But note that Creugas has one arm raised. This will make him vulnerable. A single punch will determine his fate. Summers manages to distinguish the pair, and to suggest by their demeanour which is which, and who wins.
Photograph and text by Philip V. Allingham.
