Alcamenes
Illustration — Herm of Hermes, Roman copy of a late 5th century BC original, the forefront inscription states the herm was made by Alcamenes and dedicated by Pergamios, Istanbul Museums. An ancient Greek sculptor of Lemnos and Athens, who flourished in the 2nd half of the 5th century BC. He was a younger contemporary of Phidias and noted for the delicacy and finish of his works, among which a Hephaestus and an Aphrodite of the Gardens were conspicuous. Pausanias says that he was the author of one of the pediments of the temple of Zeus at Olympia, but this seems a chronological and stylistic impossibility.
Also recorded as Alkamenes, Ἀλκαμένης
Alcamenes

QuartierLatin1968 · I, QuartierLatin1968 · CC BY-SA 3.0
- Born
- 500. · Lemnos.
- Died
- 400.
- Nationality
- Classical Athens.
- Occupation
- sculptor.
- Languages
- Ancient Greek.
VALÉORINE Encyclopedia
VALÉORINE documentary reading
Documentary summary
Illustration — Herm of Hermes, Roman copy of a late 5th century BC original, the forefront inscription states the herm was made by Alcamenes and dedicated by Pergamios, Istanbul Museums. An ancient Greek sculptor of Lemnos and Athens, who flourished in the 2nd half of the 5th century BC. He was a younger contemporary of Phidias and noted for the delicacy and finish of his works, among which a Hephaestus and an Aphrodite of the Gardens were conspicuous. Pausanias says that he was the author of one of the pediments of the temple of Zeus at Olympia, but this seems a chronological and stylistic impossibility.
Admitted source layer · organised and presented by VALÉORINE
Reference Check
Propose documentary evidence for Alcamenes. A contribution is never written directly as fact: identity, source, rights and evidence gates still decide.
Sign in to contribute
Documentary evidence
Documentary basis
Authority files
wikidata · Q505640 · wikipedia · Alcamenes
In this article
Biography
Biography
Pausanias also refers to a statue of Ares by Alcamenes that was erected on the Athenian agora, which some have related to the Ares Borghese. However, the temple of Ares to which he refers had only been moved from Acharnes and re-sited in the Agora in Augustus's time, and statues known to derive from Alcamenes' statue show the god in a breastplate, so the identification of Alcamenes' Ares with the Ares Borghese is not secure. At Pergamum there was discovered in 1903 a Hellenistic copy of the head of the Hermes "Propylaeus" of Alcamenes. It is safer to judge him by the sculptural decoration of the Parthenon, in which he must almost certainly have taken a share under the direction of Phidias. He is said to be the most eminent sculptor in Athens after the departure of Phidias for Olympia, but enigmatic in that none of the sculptures associated with his name in classical literature can be securely connected with existing copies.
The recorded working language is Ancient Greek. Phidias is recorded as an influence. Places of work recorded in the authority are Athens. Work by Alcamenes is recorded in the collections of Archaeological Museum of Olympia and Acropolis Museum.

Hermo of Hermes Propylaios, from Propylaia on Delos, 341-340 BC. Late Classical statue of Hermes is copy of the stautue of Alkamenes (450-440 BC), which stood on the Acropolis in Athens. Museum at Delos A 7756.
Zde

Herma of the Hermes Propylaios, from Propylaia on Delos, 341-340 BC. Late Classical statue of Hermes is copy of the stautue of Alkamenes (450-440 BC), which stood on the Acropolis in Athens. Museum of Delos A 7756.
Zde
Life and career
Dated record
Life and career
The full dated record · 2 entries
400
Alcamenes died.
500
Alcamenes born at Lemnos.
Primary material
Documents and archives
authority record
- Wikidata, structured authority record Q505640: Alcamenes
General reference · Wikidata
reference work
- “Alcamenes”, English Wikipedia, consulted as further reading
Reputable secondary · Wikipedia
Citations
References
Each reference names the institution holding it, so a reader may go to the document itself.
authority record
Secondary witnessreference work
Secondary witness
The Encyclopedia exists whether or not anything is for sale. Corrections are recorded rather than overwritten, and every version of this record is kept. Published 16 August 2026.
Elsewhere in Sculpture
6,174 published records in this field, each with its sources named.
- Alberto SanchezArtist
- Albin MoroderArtist
- Albin PolasekArtist
- Albino MancaArtist
- Alceo DossenaArtist
- Alceu RibeiroArtist
- Aldemir MartinsArtist
- Aldo AndreaniArtist
Best supported in this field
For owners
Own a work by Alcamenes?
A specialist will read what you send and tell you what the house can establish, what it cannot, and whether the object is suited to sale. There is no charge and no obligation. The object stays with you throughout; nothing is shipped to us unless it is arranged in writing beforehand.