Carved for the Countess Valeria Tarnowska in 1804, the “Perseus with the Head of Medusa” is one of Canova’s most beautiful sculptures and is located in the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York City. Inspired by the ancient “Apollo Belvedere” in the Vatican Museums – which had been taken by Napoleon to Paris – Canova’s sculptural masterpiece depicts the ancient hero gazing at the severed head of the Gorgon. Perseus wears a winged Phrygian cap and holds a sword often seen in ancient art. Buona visione!