A Red-Figure cup by the Tripolemos Painter, 470 B.C., Greece (colorized)

These 4 to 5 foot high pillars were common ornaments along Grecian roadsides and in houses, bringers of good luck and warding off evil spirits. The one on the left is in marble, from Siphnos, 520 B.C. The Herm depicted on the right is on a cup by the Triptolemus painter, 350 B.C.(The Man Approaching the Herm is Carrying a Basket of Offerings on His Back.)

Heracles and Cacus, by Baccio Bandinelli, 1527-34