Bronze at the Royal Academy – in pictures

Portrait of of King Seuthes III, early-Hellenistic period, Thracian, fourth century BC Photograph: National Institute of Archaeology and Museum

The Pharisee, St John the Baptist and The Levite from the Sermon of Saint John the Baptist, 1511
Photograph: Antonio Quattrone/Friends of Florence

Adriaen de Vries, Vulcan's Forge, 1611 Photograph: Walter Haberland/Bayerisches National Museum

Barthélemy Prieur, Acrobat (1536-1611)
Photograph: Jorg P Anders/Staatliche Museen zu Berlin

Louise Bourgeois, Spider IV, 1996 Photograph: Peter Bellamy/Louise Bourgeois Trust

The Chariot of the Sun, Denmark, 14th century BC Photograph: Roberto Fortuna & Kira Ursem/The National Museum of Denmark

Auguste Rodin, The Age of Bronze, 1877 Photograph: Victoria and Albert Museum, London

Dancing Satyr, fourth century BC Photograph: Will Oliver/AFP/Getty Images