The shaggy hair and the oval shield with a central spine identify the figure as a Gallic warrior, known to the ancient Greeks as a Galatian.

The figure of the Gaul appears in Greek art at the time of the Galatian invasion in 280 BC. Around 237 BC, Attalus I, King of Pergamum (241–197 BC), defeated them by the river Caicus and, to commemorate the event, consecrated a large statue group of the defeated Gallic warriors at Pergamum. Around 200 BC, he raised a second one, on the south wall of the Athens Acropolis. The latter was described by the Greek writer, Pausanias, in the 2nd century AD (Guide to Greece I, 25, II). It was small, probably made of bronze and represented the Battle of the Giants (Gigantomachia), the battle against the Amazons (Amazonomachia), the struggle of the Athenian people against the Persians and the defeat of the Gauls. The battle against the Galatians was in keeping, therefore, with the tradition of mythological combats, further adding to the glory of the Pergamenian kings.

Much of the statue has been restored, including the left hand and the right arm. Formers Orsini, Farnese and Borghese collections Purchased in 1807