Molossi Dogs - Vatican City State
Posted by: Metro2
N 41° 54.402 E 012° 27.213
33T E 288793 N 4642553
This pair of dog statues are located in the Vatican Museum.
Waymark Code: WMKCYT
Location: Vatican City State
Date Posted: 03/22/2014
Views: 10
Molossi dogs are an extinct breed of hunting dogs.
A placard at the Museum displaying this pair explains:
"The two dogs- possibly Molossi of Epirus-
did not originally form a pair and are of differing
provenance. These are Imperial Roman copies of
Hellenistic originals of the 3rd century BC showing
the dogs used to seize large prey during the hunt.
Their aspect, however, would appear to be inspired
by the iconography associated with lions."
Read more about the Molossus breed at (
visit link)