A Roman Statue of Athena Is Unveiled at Wrightwood 659 Ahead of ‘Myth and Marble’ at the Art Institute of Chicago

Acquiring original Roman classical marbles is no simple feat. Between stringent international regulations and the rarity of finding one on the market—most of the best-preserved examples long since claimed by museums—these ancient treasures are elusive. Yet, against the odds, the Halsted A&A Foundation has managed to secure an extraordinary piece: an early 1st-century CE Roman statue of the Greek goddess Athena. The statue is set to be unveiled on January 25 in the striking Tadao Ando-designed atrium at Wrightwood 659 in Chicago, where it will be on extended display.

The sculpture had been in the hands of a British family for nearly 260 years until 2023, when it was acquired by the Chicago-based organization dedicated to the promotion and conservation of fine arts, particularly Asian, Ancient Near Eastern, Greek, Roman and Egyptian works. The statue’s original owner, William Weddell—a British landowner and politician—purchased it during the mid-1700s in Rome for his estate, Newby Hall, in North Yorkshire. There, Athena occupied a niche in a circular pink-hued gallery designed by the celebrated Neo-Classical architect Robert Adam, providing a fittingly elegant backdrop for the goddess of wisdom and war.

The statue, now known as the Halsted Athena, portrays the goddess wearing a warrior’s helmet, her hand extended outward as if bestowing ageless wisdom. She is clad in a flowing, sleeveless tunic that reaches the ground, with a sash-like aegis adorned with a gorgon’s head draped diagonally across her chest.

Since the acquisition, a team of conservation experts has worked to assess the statue’s condition and determine how best to present it. Notably, the Athena is a composite figure, something common in 18th-century Italy when buyers demanded complete sculptures, even if they were assembled from unrelated parts. The head, carved during the reign of Emperor Augustus (31 BC-14 CE), has been joined with a body dating to the time of Emperor Claudius (41-54 CE). The most extensive restorations were performed on the left arm and a section from the jawline to the chest.

According to Karen Manchester, a Halsted A&A Foundation curator, these restorations are key elements of the statue’s history, adding to its layered narrative. Such “pastiches” have their own kind of allure, telling stories that span centuries, empires and hands of ownership. While these pieced-together antiquities can confound modern archeologists attempting to trace their origins, they reveal a rich tapestry of historical context.

The statue’s presentation at Wrightwood 659 sets the stage for “Myth and Marble: Ancient Roman Sculpture from the Torlonia Collection,” a highly anticipated exhibition opening March 13 at the Art Institute of Chicago. This landmark exhibition marks the North American debut of fifty-eight rarely seen ancient Roman sculptures from the prestigious Torlonia Collection, a treasure trove of classical art that has captivated scholars and connoisseurs alike.

Assembled by the Torlonia family during the 18th and 19th Centuries, a time when the “Classical age” was idealized with almost obsessive fervor, the Torlonia Collection stands as one of the largest and most significant private collections of its kind. It easily rivals the holdings of major institutions such as the Capitoline and Vatican Museums. Prince Giovanni Torlonia (1754–1829) and his son, Prince Alessandro (1800–1886), expanded their collection by acquiring sculptures from early modern Roman assemblages and conducting extensive archaeological excavations on their family estates throughout Italy. In the 1870s, the Torlonias even opened one of Rome’s first private museums to showcase their collection. However, the museum closed during the Second World War, and for nearly 50 years, the priceless marbles were relegated to the palazzo’s cellar, unseen by the public. It was not until 2020 that selected works from the collection began to emerge again, displayed in a series of celebrated European exhibitions.

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The Chicago exhibition underscores the extraordinary rarity of these works, with nearly half of the pieces on view having not been shown publicly for more than 70 years. The Halsted Athena had likewise been hidden from public view for more than two centuries. “Now, scholars, students and visitors will be able to study the statue of Athena closely and interpret it from many perspectives, including those of art history, restoration practices and gender studies,” Manchester added.

The global interest in classical art extends beyond Chicago. The Louvre in Paris recently closed “Masterpieces from the Torlonia Collection,” which presented highlights from this remarkable collection in the newly renovated summer apartments of Anne of Austria. In an era marked by geopolitical turmoil and cultural uncertainty, exhibitions like these serve as a refuge, offering the serene beauty and timeless wisdom of classical art. Just as the Romantics sought solace in the idealized past, today’s audiences are invited to revisit these works not only as an escape but as a lens through which to examine and reinterpret the complexities of our own time.