Farnese Hercules. Artist: Hendrick Goltzius (Netherlandish, Mühlbracht 1558-1617 Haarlem). Dimensions: sheet: 16 9/16 x 11 15/16 in. (42.1 x 30.4 cm). Date: ca. 1592, dated 1617.It was Goltzius' poor health as well as his desire to see the treasures of Rome that inspired him to travel to Italy in 1590--91. Supposedly, the famed Dutch printmaker traveled incognito in order to avoid social obligations that might distract from his real purpose, which was sketching and studying antique sculptures. The ancient Roman statue known as the Farnese Hercules had been discovered in the Baths of Caracalla in Rome in 1546, and installed in a courtyard of the Farnese family's palace on the banks of the Tiber, where it was one of the highlights of the Roman tour for visiting scholars, connoisseurs, and artists. When Goltzius drew the statue, the legs he saw were substitutions that had been made by Guglielmo della Porta in 1560--although the ancient legs had been found soon after the rest of the statue