Entellus and Dares

Description

This motif of two men fighting, which derives from an antique relief, gives a vivid portrayal of the male body in action. Renaissance artists were attracted to the device of showing one pose from opposite viewpoints to enhance a sense of three-dimensionality in prints, drawings, and paintings. Entellus and Dares were two famous boxers in the story of the Trojan War. They are shown in a vicious sort of combat in which each fighter's hands are wrapped with leather straps, sometimes reinforced with iron or lead.