Greek artists were aroused to new efforts to record in sculpture the
great deeds of Attalus and to place him on a level with the glorious
heroes of their nation who had preceded him. It is recorded that the
conqueror himself offered four groups of statues at Athens, and that
they stood on the southern wall of the Acropolis. The subjects were:
"The Battle of the Gods and Giants," "The Battle of Athenians and
Amazons," "The Battle of Marathon," and "The Destruction of the Gauls in
Mysia by Attalus." Thus the different epochs of Greek history were
represented, and Attalus placed himself near the other great warriors
who had preserved the honor and freedom of their nation. These groups
consisted of many figures, and are estimated to have been from sixty to
eighty in number. It is believed that at least ten of them are now in
European collections--that is, three in Venice, four in Naples, one in
Paris, one in the Vatican, and the last in the Castellani collection in
Rome. This picture of one of those in Venice seems to represent a
warrior who has been suddenly thrown down; his weapons and shield--which
last was probably held in the left hand--have been dropped in the
violence of the shock which has prostrated him (Fig. 53). His face and
hair are of the barbarian type, and the power and elasticity of his
powerful frame are manifest even in this moment of his defeat. He is
yet unwounded, but the weapon of his adversary may be before his eyes,
and in another moment he may sink back in the agony of death.

[Illustration: FIG. 54.--THE DYING GAUL.]

It is now believed that the statue of the Dying Gaul, often called the
Dying Gladiator, was the work of a sculptor of Pergamon, and represents
a Gaul who has killed himself rather than submit as a slave to his
conquerors. The moment had come when he could not escape, and he chose
death rather than humiliation. We learn from history that when these
barbarians saw that all was lost they frequently slew their wives and
children and then themselves, to avoid being taken as prisoners, which
really meant being made slaves. This warrior has thrown himself upon his
shield; his battle-horn is broken, and the sword which has given him the
freedom of death has fallen from his hand. His eye is already dim, his
right arm can scarce sustain him, his brow is contracted with pain, and
it seems as if a sigh escaped his lips. He has not the noble form of the
Greeks; we do not feel the exalted spirit