The famous sportswear brand Nike derives its name from Nike, the goddess of victory in ancient Greek mythology. Nike was a messenger for conveying the intentions of Zeus, the dominant god of the Greek pantheon: when Zeus proclaimed victory for one side on a battlefield or game, Nike would descend to the winning side and announce the victor. For this reason, the ancient Greeks would often use the winged goddess to symbolize victory in the abstract sense of the word.
In 1863, a statue of the goddess of victory was unearthed on the Greek island of Samothrace. Scholars determined that the statue dated back to around 190 BC, and had been made to commemorate a maritime victory.
The statue is now kept in the Louvre Museum in Paris, France, displayed standing on a platform shaped like the prow of a ship. It is missing its head and arms, but the power and elegance of its posture as it faces the incoming wind remains impressive.
Photo: Wikimedia Commons
照片：維基共享資源
The lithe beauty of the goddess shines through from under the folds of her dress, pressed tightly to her figure by the implied force of the ocean wind, the folds of her buffeted clothes flapping, her wings spread expansively despite the incoming onslaught. Her right leg thrust forward creates a dynamic apposition with the left and upper body; her two spread wings, as heavy as 300 and 400 kgs, reinforced inside with metal skillfully to balance, look as if they could actually be of feather, and could bear her into the air at any time.
Compared to the self-sufficient aspect of Greek art, evocative solely of the appearance of movement of the isolated subject, the innovation of Hellenic period art such as the Winged Victory of Samothrace is the suggestion of surrounding space or an unseen object or strength that the subject reacts against. In this example, the goddess’ posture is suggestive of the force of the wind and the elements at sea, with the interplay between “nothingness” and “substance” creating the dramatic tension of the statue.
Winged Victory of Samothrace is one of only a small number of original statues that survive from the Hellenistic period that are not Roman imitations. With the unification of the Greek city states and subjugation of Persia under Alexander the Great, and the spread of Greek civilization to Greek colonies along the shores of the Mediterranean Sea, Greek art evolved into Hellenistic art, which influenced the future Roman Empire, Renaissance and Baroque art and even spread as far as the East.
Photo: Lin Lee-kai, Taipei Times
照片：台北時報林俐凱
(Translated by Paul Cooper)
知名運動用品廠商耐吉（Nike），是以希臘神話中的勝利女神尼姬為名。尼姬是眾神之王宙斯的信使──宙斯決定戰鬥或競賽孰獲勝利，尼姬便降臨到勝利的一方，宣布該方得勝。因此，對於「勝利」這抽象的概念，古希臘人常用有翅膀的女神來具象化表達。
西元一八六三年，希臘的薩莫色雷斯島出土了一尊勝利女神像，學者研究其年代約為西元前一九○年，是紀念一次海戰的勝利。
Photo: Wikimedia Commons
照片：維基共享資源
現藏法國巴黎羅浮宮的這尊雕像，展翼降落在船頭形狀的石座上，其頭部及兩臂雖已不存，但其迎風向前挺立的氣勢與典雅，仍令人讚嘆。
衣褶緊緊貼著身軀，我們可以看見她有多麼健美，也可想像海風有多麼強勁，衣褶迎風撲撲作響，仍要展翼跨步向前。她右腿跨出，和左腿及上身形成三角形的動力；向上伸展的兩翼，實各重三、四百公斤，內部用金屬支撐平衡，技術精湛，翅膀上的羽毛絲絲入扣，彷彿隨時都要升騰飛起。
相較於希臘時代雕塑的「自給自足」──單純表現主人翁的形貌動作，希臘化時代的《薩莫色雷斯的勝利女神》雕像，其創新之處在於它虛擬了一個相抗衡的空間、看不見的客體或力量，如同我們看見女神的身形實體，也可以感到海風的強勁、海象的險峻，「虛」與「實」的互相穿透營造出雕像的戲劇張力。
《薩莫色雷斯的勝利女神》是少數倖存的希臘化時期原作，而非羅馬時代的仿製品。亞歷山大大帝統一希臘城邦、征服波斯帝國後，希臘文明隨之擴及地中海沿岸之希臘殖民地，「希臘藝術」便轉變為「希臘化藝術」，成為後世羅馬、文藝復興及巴洛克藝術的基石，並向東方傳播，影響深遠。
（台北時報林俐凱）
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