Hercules Resting (recto); Footed Vessel with Handle (verso), 1595-97. Annibale Carracci (Italian, c. 1560-1609). Black chalk heightened with white, squared in black chalk on right, incised (edges of figure); sheet: 35.5 x 52.4 cm (14 x 20 5/8 in.); secondary support: 36.6 x 53.3 cm (14 7/16 x 21 in.); tertiary support: 38.3 x 55 cm (15 1/16 x 21 5/8 in.). To atone for the crime of killing his family, the Greek hero Hercules was required to perform twelve labors. In this final study for a fresco of this subject commissioned by Cardinal Odoardo Farnese for the ceiling of his study in his familys Roman palace, Hercules rests, surrounded by evidence of his toil: the head of the Erymanthian boar he captured; the three golden apples of the Hesperides; and the hide of the Nemean lion on which he sits. The heros pose and exaggerated musculature are a result of the artists intense study of ancient models, and emulate specific antique sculptures depicting river gods in the Farnese collection