The Judgment of Animals in Classical Greece: Animal Sculpture and ...

The body of the Kerameikos hound appears heavy and powerful. It is defined by
strong muscles that are made visible through the haunch, hind leg, and also through the
shoulder and foreleg. The four clearly visible ribs on the side of the body give the
impression of a lean and muscular animal. Below the rib cage, an enlarged vein branches
out and runs along the abdomen. The hind leg is sinewy with a large paw that terminates
in pronounced toes and claws. The forelegs are long and muscular with equally large
paws and pronounced toes but with curved claws. Each toe, front and hind, is detailed
with patches of hair as is the underside of the right foreleg, and that of the ribcage. Hair
accentuates the lower rump as well as the tail, which disappears underneath the body and
emerges over the hind paw. Locks of hair run along the backbone and are angled slightly
back and down; they connect with detailed hair that runs around the neck and down to the
chest resembling a lion’s mane. The chest is broad and elongated. The face is defined by
muscular cheeks, attentive eyes, a large partially open mouth, and a long snout. The
forehead is flat and divided in the center by a depression that runs between the eyes and
stops at the snout. The hair encircling the face is organized in short locks that project,
thus framing the face and separating it from the rest of the body.
The Anatomy of the Kerameikos Dog
The display of musculature on the body of the statue accords well with Pseudo-
Aristotle’s discussion of leonine anatomy in the Physiognomics, which, as already noted,
calls attention to the muscular body of lion, particularly, its strong, muscular legs, and
lean haunches and thighs (809b) [173]. Similarly, the presence of curved nails on the
statue is consistent with the information Aristotle provides in the History of Animals that
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