The Laocoön Group is one of the most famous sculptures in the world and has been celebrated for its beauty and pathos since its discovery in 1506. It depicts the Trojan priest Laocoön and his two sons being attacked by sea serpents sent by the goddess Athena. The sculpture is a marble copy of an earlier bronze original, probably executed in the mid-2nd century BC. The original was probably destroyed during the sack of Rome in 410 AD; the marble copy is thought to be a 1st-century AD copy. Today it is located in the Vatican Museums.
