Seated Figures In Greek Art

Both the Laocoon and the seated figures are three dimensional sculptures, however, when comparing the two it appears that the seated figures look as if they are relief sculptures. The Laocoon statue depicts the tragic death of Laocoon and his two sons when they were punished by the gods for warning the Trojans to not admit the Greek's wooden horse into their city. As the seated statues found at Temple Abu Simbel, have the qualities of a relief sculpture which consist of only being able to view the sculpture from the front and they almost look as if they are attached to the temple, while the Laocoon is not attached to anything and it is a sculpture which is in-the-round. In-the-round means that you are able to view the sculpture from any angle.
Part of the reason for this is that the belief was that the spirit of the people could inhabit the body therefore any personification and a personal resemblance was not important. One could say that they appear dead. This could resemble the mummies that are found deep within the temple. The statues were a replacement for the dead people. It is evident that when comparing the Egyptian and Greek sculpture that the Greek sculptors main concern was individuality as each figure in the pediment has a different expression that conveys a lot of emotion. Conveying emotion is a characteristic of the Hellenistic period in Greek sculpture. At the end of 400's BCE, Greece, and specifically Athens was affected by the Peloponnesian War. At the end of the war the Greeks had very little money and were unable to create sculptures. But as people started to create sculptures again there was a dramatic transformation. It is evident that there is more emotion, especially melancholy and grief. The passive and serene faces from the Classical period are replaced with contorted and agonized expressions. There is a sense of drama in the figures as their heads are flung back and their muscles are strained and they bulge. Their bodies are flung dramatically over one another and they all have complex poses. This creates dramatic lines and curves emphasizing energetic movements as well as the power of the human body. It also enforces the idea of something tragic occurring. It is interesting to note that each figures' body is asymmetrical and they are all shaped in an "S" while the seated sculptures in front of the temple appear straight, rigid and