SANDOW AS THE "DYING GAUL"

Here in a Benjamin Falk photograph, is Sandow as he portrays his own version of "The Dying Gaul" in 1894 in 2 photographs. This pose comes from a famous Greco-Roman sculpture of the same name. The original statue depicts a soldier fallen in battle. The work is a masterpiece of art and shows a man of great strength and courage, on the ground yet still in defense of his dignity. It is easy to see why this pose was so popular with bodybuilders in the Victorian days.

Although I have tinted some of the photographs on this site, keep in mind that the Victorians LOVED color in photography, and lovingly hand tinted photographs and posters during that time, although it was an expensive process. Even some early silent movies featured hand tinted scenes. Great films such as "Ben Hur", "Napoleon" and "Phathom of the Opera" originally had expensive, yet brief water colored moments.