3-100-824 - "Royal Academy of Arts, London; photographer: Paul Highnam"/Heritage Images

Poseidippus (Roman copy of lost Greek original), early 19th century. After the death of Menander (c219 BCE), the poet Poseidippus (c316- c250 BCE) emerged into prominence as a writer of "New Comedy". He is known to have written thirty comedies. Not only was Poseidippus celebrated in his lifetime but his work was also very popular in Roman times. This cast is of a Roman version of a Greek bronze dating from the 3rd century BCE (Vatican Museums, Rome). The statue was found between 1585 and 1590 on the Viminal, near S. Lorenzo in Panisperna, along with a statue often said to represent Menander. A hole at the top of the head suggests the statue had a meniskos and therefore was positioned outdoors.