Gods, Myths and Heroes - Part 4

Samson

In this series, I aim to cover myths from many different cultures.  Just as the ancient Greeks and Romans and Vikings had their myths, the ancient Near Eastern tribes had their myths.  Some of these got written down in what we now call the Bible.

Whether you believe that these Biblical stories are true or not (I don't), some of them are powerful and inspiring, just as other ancient myths are.  Western artists, because of their Christian heritage, have often drawn upon these stories.  Samson has been a favorite for artists to depict nude, because he's strong and muscular.

This is Samson's Youth by Léon Joseph Florentin Bonnat, 1891, depicting Samson killing a lion with his bare hands.  The story, from Judges 14, sounds remarkably similar to the Greek myth of Herakles (Hercules) killing a lion with his bare hands.  Scholars think that both stories derived from a common source, an even older Near Eastern myth.

This is a statue of Samson and the lion at Prague Castle in Prague, Czech Republic.  The water is actually coming out of the lion's mouth, an unlikely source for water, so you can be excused for what you thought Samson was doing.

Another favorite artistic subject is Samson killing Philistines with the jawbone of an ass, as recounted in Judges 15.  This is Samson Slaying a Philistine by Pierino da Vinci, 1551-1552, in the Palazzo Vecchio, Florence.

Above is Samson Slaying a Philistine by Giambologna, 1562, in the Victoria and Albert Museum, London.

Another view of the Giambologna sculpture, with a better view of the jawbone of the ass, not to mention Samson's ass.

But, of course, the most famous story about Samson is Samson and Delilah.  In Samson and Delila by German impressionist painter Max Liebermann, 1909, we see Delilah cutting off Samson's hair, which is the source of his strength.  Samson and Delilah look very much like Edwardian-era Europeans.

And in Samson and Delilah by American artist Michael Aviano, 2008, above, Samson and Delilah look very much like 21st century Americans.  Funny how that works.

After Delilah betrayed Samson by cutting off his hair, the Philistines blinded him and put him to work grinding grain, as shown in Samson Turning the Mill by Maurice Mitrecey, 1893.

But hair grows back, and of course Samson got his revenge by pulling down the temple of Dagon and killing all the Philistines in it.  There are many artists' depictions of this, but Samson is not nude in any of them.  However, Samson's clothes are so diaphanous that he might as well be nude in Samson Shattering the Pillars of the Temple by Maartin van Heemskerck, c. 1550-1560, in the Rijksmuseum, Amsterdam.

Next time: the Greek/Roman version of the strongman: Hercules.