Home > Events > Antique > The Hope Hygieia: Restoring a Statue’s History

The Roman marble stature of Hygieia, a goddess of health, has changed hands more times than that "Where's George" dollar bill. Found at Ostia in 1797, the sculpture was owned by British interior designer Thomas Hope, then by American newspaper tycoon extraordinaire William Randolph Hearst. In addition to this, the statue had parts "restored" to it (like a nose, and a right forearm) in the 19th century, only to have those parts "un-restored" in the 1970s.

The Getty Villa presents Hygieia (now fully "re-restored") in all her glory through September 8. And try not to grimace at the thought of all the bad plastic surgery you saw while driving through Westwood.