Niobe and her younguest daughter

The once boastful mortal Niobe now cowers in fear before the wrath of the gods.  Originally, these two figures formed part of a larger ensemble depicting the divine punishment of Niobe and her offspring. It is believed that this group was commissioned by Seleucus, a king of Cilicia in southern coastal Asia Minor. Later, in 38 BCE, the ensemble was relocated to Rome to adorn the reconstructed temple of Apollo in the Campus Martius.