# Mercury

- By: Hendrick de Keyser (I) (Utrecht, 1565–1621)
- Date: 1611
- Medium: bronze (metal)
- Classification: figure
- Dimensions: height 32.3 cm
- Credit line: Purchased with the support of the Stichting tot Bevordering van de Belangen van het Rijksmuseum
- Museum: [Rijksmuseum](https://www.rijksmuseum.nl/en/collection/object/BK-1959-61--7e754e8e4cb637d207607cde7ac7b0b9)
- Rights: [Public Domain Mark](http://creativecommons.org/publicdomain/mark/1.0/)
- Picture: https://iiif.micr.io/dEzqI/full/!1920,1080/0/default.jpg
- Who can see it: Teens profiles and older (museums give no ratings; placed by Invisible Network from the museum's own words)

This statuette can be identified by his winged hat as Mercury, the messenger of the gods in Classical mythology. In his right hand, he originally held a caduceus, a wand with two serpents entwined around it. De Keyser gave the figure a beautiful S-curve based on the classic contrapposto pose. The weight is placed on the right leg, balanced by the left arm, with the other arm and leg remaining free.