The Farnese Hercules is the ancient Roman marble sculpture depicting Hercules holding the Nemean lion’s skin and leaning on a club.
The colossal statue was discovered in 1546 at the Baths of Caracalla in Rome, during excavations ordered under Pope Paul III. It is a Roman copy or adaptation of a lost Greek bronze attributed to Lysippos, probably created in the fourth century BCE.
The hero appears exhausted after completing his labors. His right hand, held behind his back, contains the golden apples of the Hesperides, an attribute easy to miss from the front. The statue stands more than three metres high, including its ancient and modern restorations.
The sculpture entered the Farnese collection and was later transferred to Naples, where it is displayed in the National Archaeological Museum. It is often confused with other images of Hercules because the lion skin and club are recurring attributes in classical art.