Doryktetos chora. L’iconografia dei sovrano guerriero con la lancia da Alessandro Magno a Carlo V

Abstract

This contribution focuses on the analysis of the iconography of the kings represented with the spear. An iconography of the sovereign seen as a warrior, wielding a weapon which, from the archaic Greek age, passing through the early Middle Ages and the Renaissance age, becomes emblematic in the depiction of monarchs. The spear, moreover, is the weapon used by the archetype of the universal sovereign par excellence, that is Alexander the Great. In this brief examination, comparatively, we will consider how, from the late imperial age up to Titian's famous portrait of Charles V on horseback, Alexander the Great, in this case the famous statue of the king at the battle of Granico, a work (lost) by the Sicionian sculptor Lisippo, will constitute, a model in the iconography of the sovereigns.