The Neptune of Lyon, Exhibition Giovanni Barracco Museum of Ancient Sculpture, Rome

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The Neptune of Lyon

From 6 February to 7 June 2026

Giovanni Barracco Museum of Ancient Sculpture

Corso Vittorio Emanuele II, 166, Rome

Closed now: open at 10:00

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An exhibition event of absolute importance, the result of a prestigious international exchange, brings to the spaces of the Museum of Ancient Sculpture Giovanni Barracco a distinguished guest: from February 6 to June 7, 2026, in the ground floor hall of the Museum, for the first time in Rome it will be possible to admire the great statue of Neptune, among the most significant works from the ancient Roman colony of Lugdunum, present-day Lyon. Discovered in 1859 in the Rhône River, the sculpture is the largest bronze statue of Neptune found in France, one of the most important testimonies of bronze statuary of deities preserved in Roman Gaul. Created in the 3rd century AD by a local workshop, the nearly life-size work depicts the god of the sea and waters at the moment he emerges from the waves, identifiable by the arrangement of his hair in wet curls. According to an iconography borrowed from the Greek counterpart Poseidon, it is believed that originally the deity held a trident in his left hand, his main attribute, and possibly a dolphin in his right. Its monumental seat was probably a city temple in Lugdunum, the capital city of the province of Gallia Lugdunensis and the "metropolis" of the Gauls. The initiative, promoted by Roma Capitale, Department of Culture and Coordination of initiatives related to the Day of Remembrance, Capitoline Superintendence for Cultural Heritage in collaboration with Métropole Grand Lyon, arises within the framework of an agreement for the exchange of ancient works signed between the Museum of Ancient Sculpture Giovanni Barracco and the Museum Lugdunum-Musée et Théâtres romains, Métropole de Lyon, on the occasion of the fiftieth anniversary of the latter's foundation. At the same time, some masterpieces from the Capitoline Museum are exhibited in the current show in Lyon C’est canon. L’art chez les Romains.

From 28 February to 30 June 2026

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ETRUSCANS AND VENETI

Doge's Palace in Venice, Venice

	opens - closes	last entry
monday	Closed now
tuesday	10:00 - 19:00
wednesday	10:00 - 19:00
thursday	10:00 - 19:00
friday	10:00 - 19:00
saturday	10:00 - 19:00
sunday	10:00 - 19:00

The Neptune of Lyon

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