Boethus of Chalcedon

Boëthus (Greek: Βόηθος) was a Greek sculptor of the Hellenistic age. His life dates cannot be accurately fixed, but he probably flourished in the 2nd century BCE.^[1] One source gives his birthplace as Chalcedon.^[2]

Roman copy of Boethus' sculpture of a boy playing with a goose.

He was noted for his representations of children, especially for a group representing a boy struggling with a goose, of which several copies survive in museums.^[3] Other works represent a girl playing with dice, and a boy extracting a thorn.^[2] According to Pliny,^[2] he also worked with silver.^[4] Because Boethus was a common name in ancient Greece, specific details of his life are difficult to ascertain.^[1]