Boxing Champion at The British Museum, London

With bruised and crushed ears, a swollen brow and a weary expression, this head might have originall come from a full-length statue of a victorious heavy-weight boxer. There are however other possible interpretations. A yound Herakles (Hercules) might be represented, shown after a particularly arduous labour or a fight with one of his many foes. Alternatively the diadem or band in the hair, and the sideburns, are characteristic of portraits of rulers in the Hellenistic period (323-31BC). Could this be a king in the guise of Herakles as an athlete.   This object is part of Scan The World. Scan the World is a non-profit initiative introduced by MyMiniFactory, through which we are creating a digital archive of fully 3D printable sculptures, artworks and landmarks from across the globe for the public to access for free. Scan the World is an open source, community effort, if you have interesting items around you and would like to contribute, email [e-mail] to find out how you can help.