‘À la recherche du temps perdu’ © 
The white marble, colossal statue `Theseus beats the Centaur`, made by Antonio Canova, was ordered by the Italian Republic in 1804 to dedicate to Napoleon Bonaparte.
Bonaparte transformed the Italian Republic into the Kingdom of Italy, and proclaimed himself King of Italy on March 17, 1805. The piece of art was exhibited in Canova`s studio in Rome.
Theseus`s Temple in Vienna was built between 1819 and 1823 by the court architect, P. von Nobil, as housing to the contemporary work of art, that was bought by Emperor Franz I of Austria in 1821.
The work has been in the Kunsthistorisches Museum in Vienna since 1891.

(32x22x32 cm)