IL L US TR A TE D HA N D -

B O O KS OF A R T

HIS T O R Y .

SC ULPTUR E

RENAISSANCE AND MODERN

BY L EA D E R SC OTT .
I LL UST R A T E D HA N D -
B O O KS O F A R T HI ST O RY
O F A L L A G E S A N D C O UN T R I E S .

E D I TE D B Y
J P OYN IER, R A P r ofes sor ROGE R SM ITH,
' ‘
E . . . .
, and

E AC H IN CR OWN 8 v o, CL O T H E X T RA , PE R V O LU M E , sr .

A R C HITE C TUR E C L A SSIC A N D EA R L Y C HR ISTIA N By

fk p g yp yr
.

P ro T R O G E R SM IT H a n d O HN SL A T E R , B A C o m r i s i n t h e E J
t i a n, A s s ia n , g
e s s or

, y
G re e R o m a n , B z a n t i ne , a n d E a r C h r i s t a n I u s t ra te d i t h
.

c l i i d i ng t h e P a r t h e n o n , an d E r e c h t e u m a t A t e n s ; C o o s s e u m B a t h s o f
ly
E n rav m gs , i n
h
i oc l e ti an a t
i
h
ll.

l
.

w
pi pl
'

R o m e Sa i n t So h a a t C o n s ta n t i n o e t h e Sa ra M os q u e a t e ri i s a l e m, &c kh f .

A R C HITE C TUR E : G O THIC AND R E N A ISSA N CE . B y Pr o

fe s s or T R O G E SM I H a n d E WA R R T
P O YN E , R A D
S o i n t h e P ro r e ss o f D T R hw g g
G h h gl I ly i
. . .

o t i c A rc i t e c t u r e i n E n a n d , Fr a n ce , n d Sp a i n , a n d o f R e n a s sa n c e

r hi
A c t e c t u re i n t h e sa m e C o u n t r i e s
p pl h l h
e rm an y ,
u s t ra te d
ta , a

i t 1 00 E n ra i n s , i n c u d i n m a n o f
t h e r i n c i a C a t e d ra s , C u rch es , Pa a ce s , a nd D o m es t i c B u d n s o n t h e C o n ti n e n t
. Illl w h g v g
il i g
l g y .

SCUL P TUR E E G Y P TIA N A S SY R IA N G R E E K, R OM A N

y Wh Ill l h l gi l
: , ,
.

B G E O RG E RE D FO RD it u s t ra t i o n s o f th e ce e b ra t e d Sta t ue s
and
L
Ba s R e
lp
i s t o f n c e n t Sc u
-

A
li i e fs of G
,

re e ce

t or s a n d t e
a nd
h ir W k
R om e ,
or
a
1 60

s.
M ap of A nc i en t G r m os t
e ec e , a nd a C r on o o ca

SCUL P TUR E G OTHIC R E N A ISSA N CE A N D M OD E R N B y

:
TT ll g v g W k ll
.
,
D R
L E A E SC O w h
I u s t r a t e d i t n u m e ro u s E n in s of b y G l i i b e r t i , D o n a te
ll i hbb i Mpl h l g l v ll ih w l Fll b
D e a Ro
A nd W t
a,

E x a m e s o f Ca no a , T o r a d s e n,
.

i c e a n e o C e i n , a nd o th e r l Gi i
h
.
ra

ce e d Sc u p to rs
r a te

a x m a n, C h a n tr e y,
or s

o f th e
b son,
R e na
an d
s s a n ce
o,
.

lp
Scu tors o f t h e i 8 t h a n d 1 9 t h c e n turi e s .
ot er

P A IN TI N G C L A SSIC A N D ITA L IA N B y E W A : J PO Y N T ER , D RD
I l g yp G
. .

R A , a n d P E RC Y R H D g g B A nc u d i n P a i n ti n in E
.

ii F r .

i I l
EA ,
P o m p e ; t h e R e n a s s a n ce i n
P e ri i g i a , N pl
e ra ra , P a r m a ,
h l Fl
B l g Ill
i
i h g v g
V
y
. .

ta y ; Sc o o s of
t, re e ce , R o m e , a n d

ore n c e , S e n a , R o m e , P a d u a , e n i ce ,
’

i r ly
o f th e fi n e s t P c t u e s o f Ita
a

.
e s, an d o o na us t ra te d w t . So E n ra i n s of m an

P A I N TIN G SP A N ISH A ND FR E N C H : By G SM I H ERAR D T

lll I l g Wv Vl ll
.
,
E x e te r C o O xon M
n c u di n th e
R i b e r a , Z ti r b a ra n , Li es o f
vi
. e a z q u e z , a nd u ri o ;
G
.
,

Po us s i n , C a u d e L o rra i n , L e Su e u r , a tt ca i i , C h a r d i i i ,
I gg Vl y l h y h l l b M ll b re uz e , D a d , a n d P ru d h o n ;
’

e r n e t , D e a ro c e , a n d D e a c r o i x ; C o ro t , D i a z , R o u s s e a u , a n d
C i e t ; o ur e t ,
Re
n r es,

n au t, Tr o o n , a n d man Wi h Ill
o t e r c e e ra t e d ar ti s ts t a bo u t 8 0 us t ra ti on s . .

P A I N TIN G G E R M A N FL E M ISH A N D D UTC H B y H

WW k T lb M :
I l i g
, , . .

B t x TO N , D ARD J
A , an d E W T R P O YN E , R A nc ud n
H lb y
IL M O a n ac co u n t o f
'

e
k
. . . . .

o r s of A re ch t D u r e r , C r i i ac h , a n d W
e i n ; Va n E c , V a n d e r

M l b H bb y r y y k B b Hl j
e m i nc ; R u e n s , Sn d e s , a n d V a n D c

R i i i s da el , a n d e m a ; C u p , P o t t e r, a n d
o
W
; R e m ra n d t,
e r ch e m
a s , and
a e yd e i i , a nd
a n St e e n :
B a k h u i s e n , V a n d e Ve l 0, Van
i i a n ts ,

hr lb Ill
o
H uys u m , a n d o t e c e e r a t e d P a i n te rs w h g v g
u s t ra t e d i t t oo E n ra i n s . .

PA I N TI N G : E N G L ISH A N D A M E R IC A N By H J W I LM O T
l h E li t P i i g
. . .

B UX T O N ig
M A a nd S R KO E HLE R I nc u d n A cc o u n t o f t
gl w rk H lb A i M
an e ar es a nt n s
k w
. . . . .
, ,
in En and ; th e i o r o , L u cas d e H Z
G r H ll l y k ly d K ll r ; H g
no n o s of o e n, n to n o e e re , d u cca r o , a n
M iv ; th e i i a rd s D c , Le , a n ; Van
G i b gh W y bli
a rc a r a rd and O ne e
e rs o art h
Re n ol d s w es t , R o m n e , a n d L a r e nc e : C o n s t a e , Tu rn e r , a n d
M l y r l Wi h
a nd a n s o ro u ;
W I ki e ; VIa c l i s e , u re a d , a n d La n d s e e r , a n d o t h e c e e b ra te d P a n t e rs
hp r W h Ill
i t a .

C ag te on P a i nt i n i n A m e r i ca i t 80 us t ra t io n s
. .
T AT U
S E OF B A RT O LO M M E O CO LE O N I
. A t Ven i ce
.

By A N D RE A VE It RO C HIO .
 ILL US TRA TE D HA N D -
B OOKS O F A R T HIS TOR Y .

SC ULP TUR E
R E NAISSA N C E AND M O DE R N

BY
L E A D E R SC O T T
Hon . M am A aca dem i a d el l e B el l e A r l i Fl or en ce
.
,

LO NDON
O
SAM PS N L O W, M AR ST ON , SE ARLE , R IVING T ON
( L I IT
M ED )
ST D UN STA N S
.
'
HO USE . FETTE R L A N E , FL E E T STRE E T, E C .

I8 9 I
 P RE FA C E .

I T is not an easy tas k to fulfil the title of this serie s of

books and to combi n e the W eight of history with the
,

necessary slightnes s of a han d book It can o nl y be done

-
.

by a resolute c ompression of facts which i s necessaril y

cramping to the author and probably dry for the reader .

I have done my be s t to comply w ith the conditi ons an d

,

avoid the da n gers : wi t h h ow little o r how much success

I fear to j udge ; for afte r all my little work is more an
,
.

o utline than substantial hi story to the student it may prove

useful as a classification o f the different sch o ols and to th e
.
,

amate ur as a gallery companion in continen tal travel

-
.

Necessarily the bulk of the bo o k is devo te d to Italian

A rt because for the four hundred years of whi ch we chiefly
,

w r ite,Italy was the cradle of the artistic world Th e .

n orthern G othic school was the mother of I talian sculptur e ;

the northern M odern schools are i ts daughters .

Fl or ence,
J a mmr y, 188 6
.
 C O N TE N T S .

I N T RODUCTI ON —A Sk etch . of Ea rly Ch ri ti s an Art

B OO K I — IHIRTEE N T H AN D F
.
' ‘
OU RT E E NT H
CE NT U RI E S .

PA RT I
NS
.

THE P I SA .

I. Scul p t u r
b efore th e T us can Per i od
e

II . N i ccola P isan o
.

III . G i ovan n i Pisano

IV . Sch ol ar s o f N i ccol a Arn o lfo d el Ca m b i o
V . An d rea an d N i n o Pi s an o
VI . B alducci o di Pisa
V II . Th e Cos m ati

PA RT II
N TI N ES
.

THE FL O R E .

I
. I n t rod u ctory
II . L oren z o G h i b erti
JIII . Th e B ap tis t ery Doors
l v
I . Dona tell o
‘

v . Ch aracte ris ti cs
VI . Sch o lars of Don atell o : B rt
e o l do
, N ann i ,
V ll e an o, D esi de ri o,

an d M i ch el ozz i 90

B OO K I I — FIFT EE NTH SIXT E E NT H

.
, ,
A N D SE VE N
TEE N TH C E NT U RI E S .

PART I .

THE MAST E RS OF THE FI FT E E N T H CEN T UR Y .

I . M i n o d a Fi es ol e .

II An d i ea d el Verroch i o
Pi
.

III . Matteo Ci vi tal e an d Vi t to w s ano

 CO N T E N TS .

PART II .

THE ARTI ST FAM I L I ES OF THE FI FT EE N T H CEN T URY.

I . Th e Ross elli n i
II . Th e Della Rob b i e Fam i ly
III . Th e Maj an i

PART III .

THE A R CHIT E CT SCUL PTO RS OF THE -

R EN AI SSAN CE.

I . G i ulian o an d An t oni o San G al l o

II . An d r e a an d Jaco po San so vi
no

III B . en ed etto da Rov ezz an o

IV . M i ch el an gelo

PART IV .

SCUL PT UR E IN THE SI X T E E N T H CEN T URY .

B i B di lli
I . a cc o an ne

II B rt l m m Am m
. a o o eo an n a ti an d Ti i b o l o
'

III B v t C lli i
. en en u o e n

IV Gi v i d B l g
. o ann a o o na

PA RT V
.

THE SI E N ESE SCHOO L .

1 rl y M t r
. Th e Ea as e s of Si ena
II N i lo Ar ti
. cco e no

III J p d l l Q r i
. aco o e a ue c a

PART V I .

R EN AI SSAN CE SCUL PT UR E IN E UR OPE .

I Spain
.

II Ge rm an y
.

III Flanders
.

Iv. r
F an ce
X CO N T EN T S;

B OO K III — E IG HT E E NT H AND N IN ET E ENTH

.

CE NT U RI E S .

MODE RN SC UL P T UR E —PA RT I .

I TALY .

1 . An t oni o Can o v a

II B rt l Th l d
. e e orv a s en

III M d r I t li S
. o e n a an cu l p tu r e
Am r i S ul p t r s i n I tal y
’

Iv . e ca n c o

PART II ’

E NG L AN D ,
G E R MAN Y, AN D FR A N CE .

I . Eng l an d
II . r
G e m an y
11 1 . r
F an ce
 GL O SSAR Y OF TE RM S U SED IN SC U LP T U R E .

AL TO R I
-
EL E VO , or h i gh r el i e f in
, r
wh i ch th e figu es ar e so m uch ri
a s ed

as t o be fr roun ded u p o m th e s u face r . r

Wh e e th e y are cut un d e r
so as t o be alm os t s ep ar a te it i s ca ll ed DE T A C HE D RE LI E F .

B A ss o -
R E LIE VO , or baa -
r el ie f, wh ere t h e fi gu r
es are scarce ly h al f raised
fro m th e s urface .

CA M E O . ll scul p ture on p rec i ous st on es wh ere th e des ign i s

A sm a ,

raised i n various col ours by a j ud icious use of th e di fi eren t layers '

C A RV I N G Scu l p tu re as a ppl i ed t o Wood th e wo rd i s s om etim es u sed

.

for d eco rati ve s cu l p tu re i n s tonel

CASTI N G Th e m o ul d in g o f th e m od el i n eith er pl as t er or b ronze &e
.
, .

Work s i n tend ed for m arbl e are cas t i n p l as ter to get a l as ti ng

w ork i ng copy Th e m oul d i s tak en by cov eri ng th e cl ay m od e l
.

wi th p l as te r o f Paris T h is h arden s an d th en th e cl ay i n th e
.
,

i nte ri or i s rem oved Th e h o ll o w form th u s obtai ned i s fill ed With

.

fresh p la ster afte r th e i nn er s urface h as been o il ed an d wh en t h e ,

fi gu re i s h ard en ed th e outer m ou l d i s ch i pp ed off In cas ti n g .

bron ze th e m oul d i s sun k i n t h e groun d s o as n ot to s pl i t th e ,

i n ner sp aces bein g fill ed u p with cores so th at th e b ronze figur e

i s h ol l o w as oth erw ise it W
, oul d b e t oo h ea vy .

CHASI N G Th e orn am en tati on of flat s ur faces by m eans of incised li n es

. .

EN G RA V I N G . Cutti ng a rti ti
s c d es i gns i n m etal , wood, or p reci ous
s ton es by m eans of i ncised l in es .
 G L OSSAR Y .

I N T A G LI O . En g r vi
a n
g by h oll owi ng ur face ou t th e d es gn i b el ow th e s .

It i s s om eti m es call ed i n ccw o an d i s li k e a r e v ers ed cam eo i n wh i ch

,

th e d es ign on a p reci ous s tone or s eal i s s un k i n t h e s u rface .

ME D A L , a r li
f i n m etal i n th e fo rm o f a large coi n gen eral l y us ed i n
e e ,

C om m em or ati on of p er s on s o r e v en t s V ittore Pis an o ( d 1 45 5 ) . .

was th e fi n es t m ed alli s t e v er k n o wn .

M E D A LL I O N or T on d o i s app l i ed n ot on l y t o l arge m ed al s b ut t o
, , ,

reliefs i n stone or m arb le of a round form

'

M O D E LLI N G Th e m ou l d i n g of th e arti s t s i d ea i n cl ay b efo re it i s p u t

’
.

i n to t h e h ard er m ateri al wh i ch m a k es it l as t i n g M o delling h as .

g i v en s cu l p tu r e t h e n am e of t h e p l as t i c a rt .

PO I N TI N G . Th e m a rk i n g of p recise
pl aster eas t m eas u rm
e en s t on th e
a n d t h e m ar b l e by m ean s o f a v e rti ca l r od w ith a s l i d i n g n eed l e
,
.

M eas u r es are tak en from al l th e p rom i n en t p a rts of t h e cast an d ,

th e p ro d u cti on i n m ar b l e b ecom es th u s a m eeh an i cal p r oces s wh i ch ,

i s n ot o ften p er form ed by th e arti s t h i m self .

R E LI E VO or R E LI E F Om am en ti ng th e fl at s u r face of stone or m arb le

.

by r ai si n g th e d esi gn ab o v e it It i s d on e by cu ttin g aw ay th e .

s u r fa ce r oun d t h e d es ign .

R ELI E VO or fl a t r el i ef wh er e th e figu re i s on l y th e s li gh t es t
,

d egree rai s ed from th e s u r face D o natel l o s St Ceci l i a an d Inf a n t

’
. .

St J oh n are i n st an ces of th is
. .

SCU LP TU RE . p utti n g art i sti c i deas i nto h ard m at eri al 73 c

Th e ar t o f , . .

t h e c u tti n g of s t on e or m ar b le t o t h e i m it ati on o f an y gi v en for m .

It m ay b e real or d ecorati v e Th e h i gh es t s ty le o f s cu l p tu re i s
.

t h e i d ealiz ati on of form .

FO R M S OF SCUL PT UR E .

A RA B ESQ UE . Deco rati on of E as t e r

ty le con si sti ng
n s , o f r ll
sc o s an d

foli age ,
v ry i
e n t ri t
ca e an d b eauti ful .

C A NO P U S . An u rn to t i
co n a n th e ash es of t h e d e a d , i n th e form of

th e h um an effigy of th e p erson ; m uch u sed by Egypti an s an d

Et r u s ca ns .
 G L OSSAR Y .

CHRY SE L EPHA N TI N
i vory an d gol d i n s tatu es as i n
E . A m i x tu r e of ,

so m e o f t h e o w rk
s of Ph ei d i as an d o th er G ree k ar ti s ts Th e R om an s .

m ad e st atu es of t wo col ou red s ton es s uch as m arb l e an d p orph y ry , .

EN T A B AT UL RE . Th e r
itrav e fri eze an d corn i ce ab ov e
a ch , , th e l
co um n s

i n Cl as si c an d Renai ssan ce Ar ch itectu re .

FR I EZ E . A p a rt of t bl atu re frequ en tly

th e en a , ca rv de . Al so us ed for
an y b an d of s cu l p t ur ed o rn a m en t .

G RO T ES Q UE Th e ki n d of s cu l p tu red o rn am en t i n trodu ced by G oth i c

N rm r co n s i s t i ng of q u ai n t an d u gl y fi gu res an d
.

or o an i tects
a ch .

m on s t e r s m i ngl ed w i th r l
sc ol s .

ME T OP E Th e s qu i r e s p ace b etween th e t rigl yph s on th e fr iez e of a

o f ten a pp l i e d to th e s cu l p t u re u p on i t — l ite r al l y
.

D o ri c t e m pl e ; a nd ,

th c f r ont .

MON U M EN T rk f l pt r m m m r ti v f th d d G th i
A wo o s cu u e co e o a eo e ea o c

l w y r h it t r l i f r m R i r ll y
. .

m m
on u t en s are a ga s a c ec u a n o . e n a s s an ce en e a

a m i xt r f r ph g
u e o r h d py M d r m um t
s a co a us , a c ,
an ca n o . o e n on en s

ar e o ft i th h p f pur
en n l pt r e s a e o e s cu u e .

SAR C O HA G U
P Th t l S wh i h
. t i th b dy f p r
e ac u a u rn c con a n s e o o a e s on

rl y Ch ri ti d G th i t m b l m t l l t k h i f rm
.

Th e ea s an an o c o s a os a oo t s o .

SCR OLL . A d r ti i i g f g m t ri l i
eco a v ri d d rv d
o n c on s s t n o eo e c n es a e an cu e

f f l i g i t rl
,

or o o d a e n e a ce .
 LIST OF ILLUSTRATION S .

B OO K I .

P AG E

S T ATU E OF B A TO
R O
L MME O CO LE O N I Fr onti sp iece
ST . G O RG E
E AND THE D R AG O N, FR O M TO M B OF C A RD I NA L

AM BO I I N RO U N CATH
SE E E DR AL Ti tl e p a ge
-

L I ON OF ST M ARK .

L E AF OF A C ONSU LAR D I PT Y CH— SE C ON D CE N T U RY

P U LP IT I N THE B A PTI ST E RY A T P I SA
CAM P O SA NT O A T P I SA D E SI G N ED BY G I OV A NN I P I SA NO
,

PO RT RA IT O F L O R E N Z O G HI B E RTI
OFFE R I N G OF I SAA C BY G HI B E RTI ,

OFFE RI N G O F I SAA C BY B RU N E LLE SC O

,

OFFE RI N G O F THE WI SE M E N BY G HI B E RTI ,

THE SE CON D D OO R O F TII E B A PTI ST E RY ( Fou r p a

ges )
PO RT RA IT O F DON A T E LL O
ST CE C I L I A BY D ON AT E LL O
.
,

ST G E O RG E BY D ON A T E LL O
.
,

THE DE P O SITI ON BY D ON A T ELL O

,

VI RG IN A N D CHI LD BY D ON AT E LLO
,

T IIE A NN U N C I ATI ON BY DON A T ELLO

,

M ON U M E N T O F M A RSUP PIN I BY D E SI DE RI O , .

B OO K S II . AND II I .

THE N Ar Iv rr v , BY LU CA D E LL A RO BB I A .

BU T N O S
S OF IC C O L FI O
TR oz z r, BY M I NO DA ES L E .

P O T A IT
R R V O HI O
OF E RR CC

ST A T U DE OF BY V O HI O
A v ID , E RR C C

B OY W IT H DO HI N BY V O HI O
LP , E RR CC .

M A ED SI G I
L OF ON O MA A T T A BY VITT O
SM D L ES , RE P I A NO
S

MO U NNT ME CAOF INA J A O O BY AN T ON I O

RD L C P , RO SSE LLI NO
 L I ST OF ILLUSTRAT I O N S . XV

PO RT A IT R LU C A D ELLA ROBB I A
OF

DA N I N G B
C or s BY LU CA D ELLA ROBEIA
,
.

TH SI N G
E E RS B Y LU C A D ELLA ROB B I A
,

J U N E A M ED ALLI ON BY L UC A D E LLA RO B B I A
.

M AD ON NA IN AD O RATI ON BY LU C A D E LLA RO B B I A ,

MA D ONN A AN D CHI LD BY LU C A D E LLA ROB B I A ,

CO RON ATI ON O F THE VI RG I N BY LU CA D E LLA ROB B I A ,

M A D O N N A A N D CHI LD BY LU C A D E LLA ROB B I A ,

THE SE V E N WO RKS O F M E RC Y BY G I OV A NN I D ELL A ROB B I A ,

MAD ONN A I N G LO RY BY B E N E D E TT O D A MA J A NO
,

TO M B O F CA RD I NA L A SCA N I O SFO RZA BY AN D RE A SA N SOV I NO ,

ST JO HN THE B A P TI ST BY J A C O PO SA N SOV I NO
.
,

“
IL PE N SI E R O SO BY M I C HE LA N G E LO
&
.
,

MAR B LE BAS RE L I E FS BY B A N D I N E LL I
-
,

M ED A L O F FRA N C I S I BY CE LLI N I .
,

PE RSE U S W IT H THE HE A D O F M E D U SA B Y C E LLI N I ,

ME RC U RY BY G I OV ANN I DA B O LO G N A
,
.

BAS RE L I EF BY N ICC O LO AR E TI NO
-
,

TO M B OF I LA R I A D E L CA RRE TT O B Y J A C O PO D E L LA Q U E RC I A ,

BAs RE L I EF OV E R THE D OO RWA Y O F

-
“
THE P U B L I C SC A LE S ,

N U RE M B E RG BY AD A M KRA FFT,

TO M B S O F XVTH CE N T U RY DU KE S O F B U RG U N D Y A T DI J ON ,

THE FO U N T A I N O F THE INNO C E N T S PA RI S BY J EA N G O U J ON , , .

TO M B OF PI E RRE D E BREz E AT RO U E N BY J E A N CO U SI N , ,

STAT U E OF FRED E R I CK THE G R EA T A T B E R L I N BY R AU C H , ,

M AU SO LE U M O F M AR I A CHR I STI N A BY C A NOV A ,

D A N C I N G G I RL BY C AN OV A ,

E N T RY OF ALE X A ND E R I N T O B A BYL ON BY THORV A LSD E N ,

ST A T U E OF G U TT E NB E R G B Y THORV A LSD E N ,

“
D E L I V ER US FRO M EV I L BAS R E LI E F BY FLA X M A N
”
-
.

M O T HE R A N D HE R CHI LD BAS RE LI E F BY JO HN G I B SON .

-

AN A M AZ ON A T B ERLI N MU SE U M BY AU G U ST KI SS
, ,

AR I AD N E A T FRA N E FORT BY D ANN E C KER

, ,

PED I M E N T OF WA LHA LLA AT R E G E N SB U R G BY SC HWAN THA LER ,

STAT U E O F V O LT A I RE BY HO U D ON ,
THE L ION OF ST MA RK,
. V NI
E CE ( X VTH CEN TU Y)
R .
x v iii E AR LY C HRI STI A N ART .

The ea r liest Specimens O f Christian sculpture are pr obably

the tombs at Ravenn a ( sixth centu ry ) on w hi ch the reli efs ,

are rude and Sh ow the style generally k no w n as medi aeval

, .

The bronze statue O f St P eter at R ome which is O ften cited as

.
,

E arly C hristian A r t is m ore probably late R oman w hich has

, ,

been adapted to C hristian uses by givi n g it the symbols O f

the Saint as on e sees in s ome O ld carved iv ories at M on za
,

that Roman senator s have been turned i nto Saints by chang

i n g the access ory at tributes .

About the ninth or tenth Centuries Christ i an Ar t falls

under the heads O f G othic L ombard Norman or Tuscan , , , ,

acco r ding to the nations w hich adopted it The g r eatest .

devel opment of these in the n orth to ok the name and style O f

Gothic ; in the south it became Romanesque The front O f .

W ells Cathedral ( thi rteenth cen tury ) furnishes a beautiful

example O f th e re l igious thought which influenced G othic
sculpture This cathedral is an epitome in carven stone O f the
.

Whole Christian d octrine The sculptures of A miens Cathedral

.

w est fro n t are even more beautiful than these Sh ow i n g a ,

severe simplicity w hich is ve r y dig ni fied Chartres C athedral .

and that O f Rh e i ni s display the style in its later fo r m O f

greater f r eedom both O f l i n e an d O f imaginati on .

For Germa n Gothic in its highest beauty we m ust turn to

Strasburg C athedral and those O f C o l og n e and Bamberg .

We may notice that the Ge r mans O f this age w ere also very
fine w o rkers in b ronze The t omb O f A rchbish o p Conrad at
.

C ologn e the w onderful candlestic k at M ilan an d the many

, ,

beautif ul shrines casts of s ome of w hich are at South

,

Ken sington M useum are i n stances w hich ou r space w ill n ot

,

allow us to enlar e upon g

.

Sculptu r e in E arly Gothic Art is nearly al w ays subservient

, ,

to architecture or th e dec oration of tombs We find n o .

 EAR LY C HRI STI A N A RT.

separate works of art such as were seen eve ry where during

L EA F OF A CON SU LA R D IP TYC II
.

Ca r ved Ivor y —l 1n d Cen tu r In th e So uth Ken s i ngton Muse um

y .
.

the palmy days of classic sculpture in Greece and Rome and ,

XX E AR LY C HRI STI A N ART
.

to our compani on boo k on Gothic Archite cture w e mus t

refer our readers .

But there was on e particul ar form O f scul pture which at

tai n ed a very high developme n t du r ing the ea rly C hristian e r a
.

This was C A RV IN G IN I V O R Y s ometimes O f classic sometimes

,

Of C hrist i an i nsp i ration Th e w orkmanship on the L EA F O F

.

A D IP T Y CH which belonged to a R oman consul O f the family

,

of Symmachus preser v ed amo n g many others in the

, , ,

South Kensington M useum is a marvel lous example of the

,

handicraft O f the second century .

The same art w as applied to th e decoration O f cabinets

and caskets the bi n di n gs O f books and In a hun dr ed other
, ,

ways C arvi n gs in beautiful w ood are like w ise frequently

.

met with but nothing of the kind surpasses the carvings in

,

i vory which hel d their ground wh en other forms of art were

,

practically e x ti n ct .
 E AR LY
ITALIAN SC ULPTO R S .

C H AP TE R I .

T
SCULP URE B E FO RE THE TUSC AN P E RIO D .

TALY has m any a heritage from her Etruscan fore fathers

— her d omestic ar chi tec ture with its Dori c bas ements of
,

massive stones — her gold wo r k pre served by tradition i n

,

th e remote mou n tains to be revi v e d by modern goldsmiths

,

her variegated glass w hi c h is produced in Venice by precisely

,

the same means as the E truscans us ed — and grea test of al l , ,

h er f rescoes and sculpture It may be d i fficult to trace the

.

lin k s fr om thes e rem ote times to our own but they still exist,

i n broken traces n ow i n one part n ow in an oth er as the

, , ,

w aves O f Conquest an d civi l izati o n have carried t h em Tha t .

the E tru scans gave their art w i th its Greek impr es s to

Rome is an established fact Since Tar qu i ni us P ris on s sent
,

for V ul can i u s O f Veii to make the g olden statue of J upiter

for the temple of the Capito l and Numa called on Mamurius
,

E I S.
. .
B
2 E AR LY IT AL I AN L T RS
SC U P O .

the E truscan to cast the eleven fac s i i n i l es O f the Sal ian -

shield .

In later ages the imported art too k the impress O f the

nation adopting it and in time Roman sculpture had a dis
,

t i n cti ve style of its o wn which rose and flourished u n der,

the h ealthy ru le of the Consuls but san k degenerate u n d er ,

the Emperors Tiberius robbed it O f its purity ; C aligula

.

desecrated G ree k statues to glo r ify his o wn like n ess ; Ne r o

-

abased sculpture by ma k i n g it a vehicle O f gaudy colours .

T r aj an revived it again and his Greco Roman a r tists produced

,
-

the column which bears the impre ss O f the true Roman

Spirit stern mar k ed featu r e and g r eat po w er O f expr e ssi o n ;
, ,

the G reek perfection O f form and el egance having entirely

given way to the Roman feelin g o f domination Th e art .

revived by D aj an an d again Grecianized by Hadrian fell

‘ '

, ,

u n der C omm odus and its very remains were carried a w ay by

,

C onstantine to the E ast where it stiff ened i nt o death o nl y ,

to a w ake again on bei n g restored t o its ancient h ome A rt .

seemed almost extinct in Italy during the centu r ies in w h i < h

i ts germs were buried at Byzantium but it was only sl u u ,

bering When the Goths overran the land and drove ci v i l i z

.

ation a w ay fr om before them a s ociety of artist masons fled ,

for sa f ety to an island in L ak e C omo and there k ept alive ,

the t raditions O f sculpture and architecture It is not u n .

likely that the m ore refined Greek influence remainin g i n

'

th is island w hich h ad till late Roman times been a G reek

,

colony fo stered the arti stic bias i n these emigrants It is

, .

certain that w he n in the Sixth century the L ongoba r ds also

, ,

came over the A lp s — and ceasing to wa n der built them , ,

selves palaces and ch urches as The odo r ic had don e befo re ,

them— they found no mo r e clever archit e cts than these sam e

M a gi s tr i Co m a ci n i w h o so on rose to a large con f i a tern i ty
,
 B E FO R E THE T USCAN P E RI OD
SC U P L T UR E . 3

en d w ed w ith great p r ivileges by p pe and empe r rs

o o s o . To
th em is due the style f a r c h it ctu r e w hich w he de v elo e ped ,
n o

an d perfected a f ter A D . . 1000, w as “

kno w n as the L ombard
” 1
style .

Ithas bee n said that the r e is n o L ombard style Italian ,

a r chitects ha v i n g built both for G o ths an d L on gob ards A n d .

,

as fa r as the arch itec ture g oes it is t r u e th e style b ei n g a , ,

conju n cti on of round R oman arches w ith G r ee k c olu m n s an d

capitals ; th e sculpture too is mate r ially by I talia n hands ; , ,

but that spi r it w h ich makes th e L omba r d chu r ches so full of

fire and life of w ild myths mingli n g dimly w ith C h r istian
,

t ruth s is surely th e Spi r it of the c onqu ero r s m ouldi n g th e

,

a r t empl oyed by them to their o wn ideas — as th e R oman

spirit mate r ial ized the E trusco G r eek and th e Byza n tine -

c ramped the Ro m an Fro m w hence come all th e figh ti n g

.

m on ste r s — the w il d beas ts d omi n ated to man s use a li ons ’

,
s

suppo r ti n g pillars an d fonts l the d og headed m en Q

— Q—
th c
’
-

dragon s w h ich are n ot at all the Et rusca n chim r a 2 the e —

strange Ru n ic kn ots mingl e d w ith all th is savage l ife ? Sur ely

n ot f r o m th e I talia n s w ith their age s o f ci vili z ation and
,

refi n eme n t but from th e L on goba r d s to w h om Ch r istianity

,

w as n ew an d f r om the ancie n t Scandi n a v ia n myths fi r mly

,

r oot ed i n th eir m i n ds Thus th e L ombar d styl e i n i ts carl i es t

.

forms bea r s the v e r itable imp re s s of th ei r spi r it t h r ou gh th e

‘

w or ks of th e Co m aci n c mas te rs ; th e R o manesque style its ,

l ater devel o pme n t on ly grew w hen the sa v age s pirit had gone
,

ou t w ith the las t of th o Lo mbards and the fu n d a m en tal fo r ms ,

w e re m ore refi n ed Still to that fi e r ce race are w e in d ebted

.

for keepi n g a r t alive du ri n g th e dark ag e s b e fo re th e n e w

1
St ud i o s ul S M i ch e
. l e di Pa v i a d e l D ott Ca . rl o de ll A q c u a,
’
p . 51 .

3
See L o m ba rd l egen d of d og h ad ed m en i n Pau u s Di acon u s
-
e l ,
Sto i a r
( l ei Longo bar d i I ta l i an ed Ud in e 18 2 6 ch a p x i p 2 1
,
’
.
,
. . .
'
4 EA R LY IT AL I AN SC UL P T O R S .

bi rth t ook place Queen Th eod el i n d a h ad a complex rel ie f

.

executed for the cent r e door of her cathedral at M onza The .

sub j ect is the B ap ti sm of Cl m s t — a heavily poised an gel

'
' -

h olds th e ga r ments of our L o r d a dove the Holy Spirit)

pou r s water on Him from a vase in its mouth The Virgi n .

and three ap ostles stand nea r The upper part of the arch
.

and its corners a re filled w ith votive sculptures rel ating to

Th eod el i n da an d her gifts But the places to study sculpture
.

under its most distinctive L ombard form a r e the fa c ade

and the capitals of the church of S M ichele at P avia .
,

w hich are cove r ed with reliefs Besides the usual m yths

.

and fighting animals a r e some Scriptural sub j ects domestic ,

and all egorica l sce n es an d a great variety of angels see m ingly

, ,

the prototypes of those of Fra A ngelic o .

The capital on the left of the tribune has a most interest

i n g carvi n g An ol d man is dyi n g and his soul arises from
.
,

his m outh in the form of a baby ( a bel ief hither to thought

to be m ed i ze val ) a w icked demon has caught the soul by the
fo ot but it clings with both arms to the nec k of a good
,

a n gel — probably S M ichael — Wh o thrusts his spear into the

.

dem on s m on th These multitudinous sculptures a r e he w n

’
.

i n sandstone chiefly by the outli n e being cut in straight and

, ,

the sub j ect left in reli e f In fact just as the L ombards left
.
,

the art so d o we find it agai n in the hands of the P isan

,

maste r s of the eleventh and t w elfth centuries before N i ccol a , .

A t this time sculpture w as languishi n g in the No r th .

Under Byzantine influence the M osaicists were fixing their

imperishable e fli gi es on the walls and roofs of the churche s
at Ravenna w hich wer e either of E astern or Roman ar ch i tec
,

tu r e w h i le the sculptor was c on fined to the use of mere

,

emblems an d on e or t w o figures of saints i n a d ege n erate

,

Roman style on the tombs .

G EA R LY IT AL I A N SC UL P T O R S .

the Du om o of A m al fi arose and that of Sale rno whose pul pit , , ,

resting o n t w elve pillars is sculptured i n marble and dec or ,

ated w ith mosaic Sa l az a ro gives in his book an ill us tration

.

o f a crucifix of the ninth century fr o m the ancient church of

SS C osmo and Damian o It is o f wood and n ot By za n ti n e

. .
,
.

There is decided moulding in the ribs and body of th e

Ch r ist and the face is br oad an d lifelike
,
.

J he t w elfth century brought forth those p r ecu r sors of

'

G h i b er ti s gates the b r onze do o rs o f th e cathed r als of Tran i

’

< A D. . o f Tr oj a a n d o f Fo ggia in w hich Bari ,

sa ans Tran en s i s sculptured scenes f r o m the passion in fi fty

compartments ; each sce n e consisti n g of on e or tw o fi gures .

A l l the three sets o f d o ors see m to be ca s t f ro m one mould .

This A pul ian revival has p r obably mo re c onnection w ith

th e t h i rt eenth centu r y P isan school o f sculpture than would
appear at fi r st sight Under th e rule of Frederick I L whe n .
,

“
all thes e sple n did churches w ere built a g reat stride w as ,

m ade i n t h e arts which fell again after the death of M anfred

,

a t Naples though a genius or t w o inspired by c l assical sur

, ,

r ou n dings preserved a spark So me of these emigrated to

, .

Tuscany P isa &c whe r e they began the Renaiss ance of

, , .
,
”
sculpture 1 So writes Sal a zar o and the fact t h at P isa dates
.

her rise fro m the spoil s of three successive sack ings of A m al fi ,

and that her cathedral w as built fro m prize money taken at -

P alermo w o u ld go far to Sh o w the probability that she also

,

imported some ideas of art .

It i s true th at many rude sculptors of the Lombard school

w ere still at w or k in central I taly such as E n r i cu s and G rua ,

Inon e who adorned the portals o f some P i s to es e ch u rches

, j ,

A O 116 6 ; Rodolf w h o sculptured a Sav iour and apostles

. .
,

i n S Bar tolommeo at P antano A D 116 7 ; and B i d u vi n us

.
, . .

1 ‘
Stud i o ll
su
'
A rt e r
Me i d i on al e,
’
p . 3 .
 SC U P L TUR E B E FO R E THE T USCA N PE RI OD . 7

an d Rob er tus , w h o w or k ed
at Lucca in the same century .

T h e re w as also the P isan sculp tor and architect B onann o ,

w h o in 1 174 gave the design for the Tow er of P isa an d in ,

1 18 0 cast the bronze d oo rs for the cathedral of the same

city The la r g est gates were destroyed by fire in 15 9 6 b u t
.
,

”
th e sma l ler o n es called the P orte di San Ranieri still exist
, , ,

an d are ve r y Byzantine in style A fter this Bonanno cast .

,

s ome still finer gates for the wes tern portal of the cathedra l
at M on reale near P alerm o where Bar i san us of Trani had
, ,

adorned the nort he rn s i d ed oor with similar gates in 1 179 .

A s a proo f of ou r argumen t that s o uthern art was furthe r

advanced than P isan at that time on e has only to compare ,

th e w or kmanship of these t w o gates so nea r ly co n temporary .

T h ose of the s outhern art ist B ar i san us a r e in twenty eigh t

, ,
-

co mpartments form ing se ven ro w s and sh ow a much less

, ,

c ra m ped style of art with excellent w orkmanship The

,
.

larger gates m ade by Bon anno in 1 18 9 have scen es from the

, ,

O ld and N ew Testaments ; each of the forty com partmen ts

co ntaining on e or two fi gures the whole surrounded by a ,

fr ie ze o f lea v es and scrolls but the style is much m ore rude

an d s ti fi a ki n d o f combin ation of L ombard and Byza ntine
, .

P erhaps the best p re Niccola sculptor w as Ben edictus Ante

-

lam i of P arm a who cast the bron z e gates of the curious ol d

,

L ombard Baptistery in that city with scen es from the life of ,

S J ohn the Baptist ; the marble pilaster s of which repre

.
,

senting the seven w orks o f mercy and the parable of th e vine ,

are in better style th an the bronz e work In the cathed ral a .

ve r y curious bas reli ef by him exists which once form ed the

-

fro n t of the al tar It is a D ep osi ti on the Sa v iour has one

.

hand loo sened which the Vi rgin an d Angel Gabri el cares s

,

in gl y hold Behind them are J o se ph the two M aries and

.
, ,

Salome all sim ila r ly posed fi gures except th at two of them

, ,
8 EAR LY ITA L IA N SC UL P T O R S
.

have on e hand u plif ted O n the right the cent uri ons di vide
.

the coat and the An gel Raphael pushes do w n the head of

,

P i late as if to compel h i m to worship There is great and .

serious expression throughout The face of Ch r ist is especially

.

’
digni fied The art i st has risen above his con temporaries
.

manner of cutting i n the figu res on the flat surface and ,

though the ribs are only i n di cated by lines yet there is a ,

good attemp t at m odelling i n the nec k ; the draperies ar e

set but i n di gnified folds
, .

Then comes M aestro G ugl i el m u s o f M odena who needs no ,

comment for he praises his ow n geni u s i n his inscriptions

,

and G ui d ectus of Lucca who sculptured the well kno w n

‘

figur e of S M artin dividing his cloak with the beggar on the

.

front of the church of S M artino Al l these are more or

. .

less speci m ens of the same sculpture as that on the L ombard

churches of the seventh to the ni nth centuries but less savage ,

in feeli ng and more C hristian ized It wanted only Ni ocola .

P isano to i mport the spirited art from the south and add to
i t his own classical impress to thus earn his title of the
,
”
Father of Sculpture .

I n early times the offices of architect and scu l pt or were

rarely divided . Mr Ruski n v ery truly traces the roots
.

of the ar t i n the artisanship — i t was not enough that the

chur ch shoul d have walls and a roof to k eep the worshippe r s
dry the Spi ri t of religion was to be impressed on it Scri p
'

tur e s tories and sain tly deeds sho uld glo w in col o ur on th e
wall s ; emblems of the work s of G od i n nature an d fi gures ,

o f the guardian angels were to be visible in sculpt ured sto n e

,

ro und the p ortal Great truths were to be taught not only

.

’
by the preacher s eloquence but Spo k en by silent beauties
,

wherever the eye could rest I t was n ot enough that the

.

tomb shoul d be merely a receptacle to bury th e dead out o f

 SC UL P T UR E B E FO R E THE TUSOAN P E RI O D . 9

s ightit w as to be m ade as all past li ves sh ould be a record

, ,

an d example a h ope for the living

,
The good d eeds of the
.

saint were sculptur ed on the sarc ophagus ; he lyi n g calm

above his a ccompli shed works while the an gel h om e can opy
,
-

an d statuettes of sa i n ts insu r ed the h ope and belief in th e

guardian ship of the heavenly p owers Thu a r tisanship with

.
s

soul added to it grew in to art .

 C H AP T E R II .

N Ic o o L A P IS ANO .

beginning to study the life of Ni ocola P isano one ,

encounters Such a mass o f contradictory assertio n s ,

theori es and con j ectures tha t it seems a hopeless tas k to sift

,

ou t the t r uth and the much vexed q uestion Whence -

,
”
did he come 1 is more diffi cult than ever to ans w er A w ar
'
.

has been ca r ried on amongst the critics for so m e years but ,

t h e po int is still undecided .

The questions are on on e Side Wa s h e th e son of a n ota r y ,

f Ser B ta gzo t—
'

f
o Si ena , ca l l ed P i etr o, a nd gr a nd s on o and h ad

h e h is ed u ca ti on i n Tus ca n y and on the ot h er side Wa s ,

l a , a n d h a d h i s a r t bi as fr om th e
’

h e th e s on o f P etr us d e A p a l
s ou th er n r ev i va l u n d er Fr ed er i ck II In both cases the
.

evidence depends on documents and each Side has a st r ong ,

body of supporte rs — C icognara M ilanesi Semper P erk ins , , , ,

Sch n as se and D ob b ert sus taining the Tuscan theory and

, ,

Rii m oh r C r o w e and Caval cas el l e G rimm Forster Lii b k c

, , , , ,

and Sa l azar o the A pulian

,
.

N o w for the disputed documents The first is in th e .

ar chives of S J aeopo of P i s toj a and is da ted 11 J ul y 12 72 ,

.
, ,

w hen Niccola was already old It runs thus : M agis ter .

N i ch ol a p i san u s fil i u s q . P etrus de H ere th e

 N ICC O LA I
P SA NO . 11

o r iginal is C iampi il legible , an d 1

,
on whose reading all
d e pends supplies th e h iatus w ith
, Senis .
”

The second is date d Nov 13 .

,
1 2 72 .
— M agi s ter N i ch ol e
q uon d a m P etr i d c ( a [
n oth e r
Sen i s
] Ser B l asi i p i sa
‘

hiatus ) N ow Si g M ilanes i of the Fl oren tine archives ( an d

.
'

auth or of the very fi n e annotati ons on Vasari at p r ese n t ,

be i n g published ) having studi ed th e se docum ents asser ts that

, ,

C i ampi must have arbitra r ily supplied the missing w o r ds in

on e and mis r ead the abbreviati o ns in the latte r which he ,

judg es should be read thus : M ag i s tr o N i ch ol e q uond a m

P etr i d e ca pp el h z Sa n cti B l as ai p is a ( M aster N i c co l a

o f th e de funct P e te r o f the cha p e l ry or parish of S Biagi o .

pisan ) Si g M i l an esi besides being t h e best authority on ol d

. .
,

M S i s al so unbiassed for he would w illingly prove the

.
, ,

Tuscan theo ry if p ossible .

There b eing then no documentary proof of the grand

fath er Ser Biagio let us take the d oc uments on the Apulian
, ,

side o f the questio n The standi n g po int he r e is a deed .

-

d ra w n up i n Sie n a M ay 1 1 12 6 6 in w hich these w or ds

2
, , ,

occu r : r egu zs ivi t m a gi s tr um N i ch ol a m P etr i DE A P UL IA

“ ' ’

qu ad i p se f a cer et et cu r a r et i ta , quad A r nolf us d i sc ip zd us s uns

s ta ti m ve n i r et Sena s a d l a bor a nd u m i n d i cto op er e cu m i p s o
&
m a gi s tr o N i ch ol a .

says he w as son of P ietro di A pulia ( Magi s ten

Sal azar o
lapidum ) and th at this Pi etr o settled in P isa w here he di ed
, , ,

1 2 66 The only arguments against this are those of Si g

. .

M ilanesi w h o sugges ts that there are t wo places called

,

A pu lia or P uglia in Tuscany and thinks the P uglia n e ar ,

L ucca should have the credit 3

The positive evidence w hen .

1 N ti i io z e ite d ella Se gres ti a Pi s toj ase Fi renze 18 10

n ed ,
’
, .

Mil an es i Docu m en ti per l a Sto r i a d ll A rte San es e v ol i p 149

‘ ’
1 '

,
e , . . . .

M i lan esi , Commentario s ull a V ita d i N i ccol a Pi sa no p 3 23

’
1 . 1
”

,
12 E AR LY IT AL I AN SC UL P TO R S .

sifted only establishes the fact th at his father was P ietro ( th e

grandfather Ser Biagio resolvin g i nto a parish i n P i sa ) and
, , ,
“ ”
the words of Siena having no fo undation e x cept in the
, ,
’

conj ecture of Si g C iampi The A pulia of th e oth er deed

. .

remains but what A pul ia is meant ? In the absence of proof

,

internal e v idence must be sought If Niocola w ere not a .

purely inventive genius w here is his antitype ? Do his w ork s

,

m ore assimilate to the cl assical remai n s at P isa or the m ixed

classico Saracenic style of meridian art of the twelfth centu ry ?
-

Take his t wo famous pulpits those of P isa and Siena Th e ,

.

reliefs show a distinct study of the Greco—Roma n sarcophagi ,

&c . but whence comes the architectural design ? There was

not a pulpit in Tus cany simil ar to his before th at time but at ,

Bari and A m al fi w ere some earlier ones of the same type It .

has been said that the meridio n al art of the period had no
” 1
classical lean ings at all but over the arch of the pul pit at
’
Ravello which l ike Pi san o s rests on li on supported col umns
, , ,
-

and has the same M o o rish archi tectu re is a classic bust o f ,

Si gal gi ta Rufolo wife of the d on or Sh e has tw o long tass els

, .

on her head dress like those on some Etr uscan statues and the
-

“
ones found by Schli emann at Troy The c o ins s truck in .

Sicily and Naples in 12 3 1 and 12 3 6 by Frederic k I I are a .

complete reminiscen ce of the time of the C aesars 2

Is it n Ot .
”

l ikely that when Fr ederic k t o o k Ni ocola in 12 2 1 to Naples

,

( he bei n g a lad of sixteen o r seventeen

) to assist in the w orks
goi n g on at Capua and Castel dell U ovo the sculptu res of ’
,

the south may have d e vel oped his artistic g enius an d i n duced ,

him on his return to P isa to study wi th g r eater interest the

, ,

Greek sculptu res there w hich w e re his models in h i s m ore

,

mature works ? These were chiefly the sarcophagus w ith the ,

Ku n s t u n d Kfi n s tl er Di e Pi san i
’
1 . .

2
La Sc ul p tu r e Fl ore n t in e,
’
Re v ue d es d eux M on d es , Oc t 186 5
’
. .
14 EA R LY ITA L I AN SC UL P T O R S .

Sides are ado rned with bas r eliefs r epresen ting the -

,
N a ti vi ty ,
E p ip h a ny , P r es en ta ti on , Cr uci fi x i on , and L a s t J ud g me n t .

The relief is in the G reek style so high that the figu r es are ,

alm ost d etached fro m the g r ound a g r eat cha n ge fr om the ,

work of the Com aci n c an d R oma n es q ue masters The com .

positio n s are so cro w ded that perspective is sac ri fi ced and ,

“
with all his classical leaning he still retains the medi aeval
faul ts of sh o r t figures and large heads a n d the use of the ,
”

d r i ll rather than the chisel for the c o rne r s o f th e eyes an d

m outh &c The recli ning Virgin in th e N a ti vi ty resting
, .
,

o n e elbow on a cushion seems taken from the lid of an

,

E truscan tomb ; the attendant maids are nymphs f r o m a

Roman vase Behind this group is a seco n dary sub j ect of th e
.

A n n u n ci a ti on i n which the Vi r gin i s very modest with an

, ,

expressi on of mingled eagerness and timidity Dia n a might .

have been he r p r ototype but fo r the a n gel no antique m od e l

,

was found I t has al l the medi ae val faults the sheep in the
.

foreg ro und show a direct study of nature O ne is scratching .

hims e lf w ith his hind leg The k ings in the A d or a t i on a r e.

i n a ve r y d ec o rous and seri o us style ; the comp o sition le s s ,

cr owded than the last is m o r e ha r mo n i o us ,

The C r u c i .

n sh o w s st udy of the classic nude S

fi x i o the avio ur bei ng ,

muscu l ar as a Rom an Hercules .

The same in fl uence i s seen in the Las t J u dgm en t a m i xtu r e ,

o f pa ga n col d ness of handl i n g w ith medi ae val supe r stition a n d

passion The G r eat J udge with the cross at Hi s fe et divides

.
, ,

the blessed fro m the damned The elect a r e a c r o w d of .

heads thrust for th like the sphin xes on the E trusc a n a r ch at

V olte rra ; a few faces express dev otion The condemn ed w ith .
,

L ucifer i n their midst a fford great scope for the scul ptor s
,
’

imaginatio n — i n the dem ons torturi n g th e so uls and in th e

, ,

i nte n se agony and terror of th e victims The strange forms .

16 E AR LY ITAL I AN SC UL P T O R S .

of these demons are reminiscences of pagan gr i fl on s chi meras

'

, ,

typho s & c
n 1 .
,

In the statues which support the corn ers the same revival ,

i s m is visible A P rophet M oses is c opied almos t l ine for

.

li n e from a Bacco barbato on the G reek vase in the

C ampo Sant o w ith the single d i fl eren ce that the youth
,

supp orting hi s arm is d r aped i n stead of nude In on e part .

is a fi n e Hercules with lions and tw o tors i used as Caryatides ,

a r e splendidly Greek while the E ve an d For tun e are the ,

Venus and A bundance from the Roman con sul ar coins The .

pulpit w as damaged in the sixteenth centu r y by Lo renzino de ’

M edici w h o broke off some heads to ado rn his own st udy

,
2
.

N i ccol a s next w ork i n chr onological o r der is the famous

’

A r ea d i Sa n D o men i co at Bol o gna Vasari dates this 12 25 .

but as San Domenico di Cal ar oga who die d 12 2 1 was not , ,

canon ized till 12 3 4 Ni ocola could not have sculptured h is

,

m iracles before that time The true epoch of N i ccol a s wor k .

’

is A D 1 2 6 5 7 w hen in the sec ond translation of the body

. .
-

it was placed in an urn sculptured by Ni ocola P isano and his

pupil Fra G uglielmo da P isa J une 5 12 67 It is probable , , .

that when Ni ocola returned on Sept 2 9 to Sign the contract ,

.
,

for the Sienese pulpit he left Fra G ugl ielm o in ch arge he , ,

3
alone being present at the translation The Ark as it stands .
,

n ow is an e di fice o f three stories but the gradino or base w as

, ,

by Al fons o L ombardi in 1 49 0 The canopy with its statues .

”
and foliaged sculptures is by Niccolo da Bari or dell Ar ea , ,

a scholar of Js copo della Quercia Tribolo and M ichelangelo .

also contributed statues But all these were added 2 00 .

1
See C rw o e an d His tory O f Pai n tin g
Cav al cas el l e, ,
’
v ol . 1
. ch . iii .

p 12 5 als o Ci cogn ara Storia d ella Scu ltu ra v ol i

.
, ,
’
. .

1
Istori e Pi s an e x vi s ea b y Fran ces co Ron s i ni
, ,
’
.

A rch i v i o St or i a I talian o t om v i
’
3
Bonai ni , , . .
 N IC CO L A I ANO
P S . 17

y e ars afte r Ni oc ola sculptured hi s Ar k w hich was a squa r e

'

sarc ophagus w ith Si x compar tments of reliefs which tell the ,

story of th e sai n t .

l st A m i r a cl e wor ked a t Rom e on Ash Wednesday 12 15

.
, ,

the Card i n al s n ephe w L ord N ap o l eon e bei n g r u su sci ta ted

, ,

by S Domi n ic after a mortal fall from his horse The

. .

h orse is a fac—sim i le of on e in a b i ga on an E trusco G reck -

1
v se
a . There is a classical majesty in the figu res of th e
abb ess and h er nuns and much fe e lin g in the faces of the ,

saint and his fr iends .

2 u d l h o O r d ea l by fi r e a t L a ngued oc the saint burn ing

'

.
,

h i s ow n and tl e M anichean bo oks and his being saved

.

u n harmed from the flames Bet w een these tw o reliefs is a .

cha r mi n g little statu e of the M ad on n a an d Ch ild the type ,

an d m od e l of all the M ad onn as of that sch oo l : th ose of

G i o van n i P isano and ow n A n dr ea P isa n o s e em onl y m or e
, ,

or less d efecti v e c opies that of Ni oc ola is dig n ified que en ly , ,

w e ll balanced an d the Child rou n ded smili n g an d child

-

, ,

like ; w hile in that of Giovanni on the Du om o of Flore n c e

the attitude is ove r bala n ced the faces exp ressionless an d , ,

the Child a dimi n uti v e man N ino i n th e Spina at P isa .

, ,

h as alon e equalled th is regal M ad on n a of N fec ola .

3 rd . SS P eter . a nd P a ul co ns i gn th e gosp el to th e s a i n t,

an d he in tu r n to his m on ks Here all is cal m and dig n i fied .

— the s w eet placid faces of the m onks and th e classic maj esty
, ,

of the ap o stles in embr o ide r ed pallium — all is lovely an d

d ec or ous To give this a spiritual meaning the other en d
.
,

( f o u )
rth reli e f Sh o w s the An gel s f eed i n g th e m onks i n ti me

i thus c onnecti n g the g spel ith the Bread of

o
ff a m ne ,
o w
life Th e t o a gels are beautifully dra
. w n w n — as C ic ogn ara
k e t w o Camil l i ca rr ying o fferings to the altar
”
says The
'

.
,

1
Pa d r e r
M a ch ese, Mem o ri e,
’
v ol . i p
. . 104
.
18 E A RLY IT A L I A N SC UL P T O R S .

moulding of the graceful limbs the folds of their loosely ,

gi rded tunics — eve r y line is graceful and true to natu r e As .

wo r ks of art they are t w o centuries before their age The .

back of the Ar k has Si x sto r i e s of the life o f a d isciple of

the saint the Beato Reginald of O rleans The comp ositi on s
,
.

are over cro w ded and w anting i n i n terest the su b j ects

-
, ,

having evidently p r oved too di ffi cult for a m ere pupil to

execute for these w e r e t h e w ork of P ro G uglielm o . .

The Sienese pulpit to b egin w hich N i ccol a left the A r ea

, ,

is merely an amp l ificati on of the P isan on e ; its position in

the centre of a la r ge ch u r ch w a r ra n ts a g r a n der w ork It .

is octagonal and rests on ten c olu m n s four o f which a r e sup

, ,

po r ted ou lions on e has a horse bet w ee n his cla w s in t rue ,

L ombard fashi on These a r e all well desig n ed and full of fierce

.

life He might have studied the lion fro m l ife in the Flo r en
.

tine Ser r agl i o So richly ado r n ed is the pulpit that n ot a

.

mo r sel of ma rble is left plain angels fill the c o r ne r s of a r ches ,

statuettes a r e on the pilasters and the eight sided parapet has

,
-

larger statu e s The pan els co n tain alm ost th e same subjects
.

as the P isan pulpit ; a hi as s u cr e of th e In n ocen ts is added ,

and the L a s t J u d gm en t is ampli fied into t wo c ompa r tments .

W ith greater space he has gi v e n mo r e re i n to h i s fancy the

dem ons are m ore h o rrible the dam n ed writhing i n g r eate r
,

cr ow ds It i s curi ous h ow n ear he came to the con c e ptio n s

.

o f the later masters — Gi o tt o O rcagn a Fr a A ngeli c o and

, , ,

Sig n o r elli — w h o w e r e inspi r ed by Dan te s v ivid descriptions

’
.

Dan te himself might have studied his Inferno f rom

N i ocola .

“
In the Nativity the Virgin recl ini n g on her l ectus is
simil ar to the on e in P isa Instead of th e Annunciati on he
,

has here i ntroduced a p r etty Vi s i ta ti on and an a erial subj ect

o f Shepherds and an gels .
 N IC OO LA P Is ANO . 19

Whil e N i ccol a was at Siena ,— e n gaged i n w ork w hich

resulted in the fo undati on of the Sienese scho ol , — stirring
events w ere taki ng place in the south M anfred had usu r ped .

the thr one of his father Frederick II and fou gh t the a r my .

of P ope U rban IV w h ich under C ha r les of A n j o u defeated

.
,

M anfred at B en ev en tu m and the P ope off ered the crow n o f

the two Si ci l i es to the vic torious C harles But the race of .

Frederick II w as not extinct

. Con rad i n o his grandson
.
, ,

prince of Swabia got together a lar e army of Ghib ellines

, g ,

and ma r ched over the A lps with men on O ct 2 0 , .

,

12 6 7 and even ente red Rome in triumph

, But at Taglia .

cozzo near Lake Triano C harl e s of A njou defeated and b e

, ,

headed him an d his body w as thro w n into a ditch To ato n e

, .

for thi s indignity and cruelty or to celebrate the victo r y , ,

Charles determined to build an abbey at Tagl i acoz z o for whi ch ,

N i ccola — then at Viterbo resto ring the convent of the preach

ing Friars — was commissioned to fu rn ish the design It is .

not probable that he carried ou t the work for the Ncap o ,

litan archi ves name Magi stri J s copo P ietro da Caul Simone , ,

da Argan ta &c as architects The last authen tic wo r k of

, . .

N iccola was the foun tain of P erugia whi ch he and his s on ,

Gi ova n ni now 3 4 years of age was ordered to make in 12 74

, , .

The w ater had bee n b r ought from M onte P acci an o in 12 5 4 , ,

by a co m mittee of archi tects ; the p l an was ho wever by , ,

Fra te P l en eri o .

An inscription has lately been brought to light from und er

the tartar accumulated on th e stone proving Ni ocola to have ,

been s eventy four years ol d w hen he w o r ked there

-
The .

fountain w as so much prized by the P erugians that laws w er e

enacted for its preservation The w ater falls over th re e
.

gradations of vases the two under ones of marble the upper

, ,

a bronze tazza resting on three nymphs w ith gr i ffi n s and ,

o z
20 E ARLY I T AL I A N SC UL P T OR S .

'

lions above T h e first basin is on t w elve steps and h as

it .
3
,

twenty four sides scul ptured by Giov anni they are emb lem
-

ati cal of the months sciences fables and heraldic devices , , , .

The second vase is m ount ed on twenty four columns ado rned -

with statues of Scriptural characters by Niccola whi ch are ,

w ell draped but somewhat broad and shor t

,
The bronze .

w ork A D 12 77 was by M aestro Rosso of P eru gia call ed zl

“ '

.
, , ,
’

p a d el l a zo Niccola . did n ot remain the w hole time at

P eru gia for in 12 78 G iovan n i w h o was left there to finish
, , ,
’
his reliefs was recalled to P isa by his father s i l lness Bei n g
, .

d etained p er fence at Florence to give his advice about

“ ”
,

some mills on the A rno he did n ot reach home till after ,

’
N i ccol a s death and as Vasari says The whole city received
, , ,

him with h onour co n gratulating itself that after N i ccol a s

,
’

’
loss there remained to them G iovan ni heir to his father s
, ,
” 1
virt ues and talents An d truly N i ocola did marvellous .

service to his age He fou nd sculpture dead and lifeless.

,

an d left it renovated and beari n g the see d s of a new life he

sh owed sculptors that there w ere tw o sources from whi ch to
d raw— nature an d th e antique he bro ught n ew form s into
arc h itecture bl ended the warm colour and varied forms of
,

the E ast with the colder W este r n types H is whole li fe was .

spent in rearin g up beauties i n Italy which have been a j oy

to all subse q uent ages In fact he laid the fou ndati on sto n e .
-

o f that Renaissance of sculpture which culminated in M i ob el

’
angelo H is or h i s pupils i nfluences are to be traced in all
.

schools Sienese sculpture grew ou t of h i s wor k in that

.

city Florent i ne art from A rn o lfo and Andrea P isano his

, ,

pupil s He himself carried the seeds to Bologna and h is

.
,

son plan ted art in P adua .

1 Th ere 18 no di r ec t p r oo f of th e dat e of N i ccol a s d eath , b ut

’
a fter
12 78 he is s p ok en of as quon d am ”
i n G io v an n i s sign atures
’
.
 C H AP T E R I II .

G I VAN N
O I P IS A K O .

ICCOLA S
’
was n o t u nw orthy to be his successor
son

the architectural wo r k s he desig n ed an d c ompleted

’
after his father s death pro ve h o w much o f his tale n t G iovanni
i n herited although he n ever equall e d him in artistic sculptu r e ;
,

his best e fforts being those i n w h ic h he m ost cl osely imitated

Niccola H is first i n depe n de n t w o r k w as th e tiny church of
.

Sa n ta M aria della Spina at P isa This w as o r iginal ly a mere

.

fi s h er m an s oratory called S M a r ia del P o r t o o n t h e quay o f the

’
.
, ,

A rno but a P isan m e rchant havi n g b r o ught back a p r eci o us

r elic from the E ast— a thor n f r om the cr o w n o f J csus — the ,

number of devotees i n cr e ased so g r eatly that it became n eces

sa r y to e n large the church The w ork w a s given to Gio vanni
.

P isano w h o made a p erfect l ittle G othic edifice a lovely

“ ‘

, ,

pin n acled shrine g r o w ing out o f the riv er like a crystallizati on .

So G othic is it that it has been thought to be the desig n o f

,

a G e r ma n ( one o f th ose Tedeschi spo k en of by Vasa r i )

“
,

but G i o vanni s love of Gothic form sh o w s itse l f in all h i s

’

w or k s i t was as strong in him as N i ccol a s love of the ’

anti q ue A fter t h is h e designed the Ca mp o Sa n ta w hich has

.
,

si n ce bec ome a perfect sh r i n e o f medi aeval ar t The Campo .

Santo was the first cemetery in Italy ; before th is time it ,

C a mp o SAN TO P I A
, S . A bo u t A D
. . 12 80
. D es i gned by G I OVANNI P I ANO
S .
24 E A RLY I TAL I AN SC UL P T O R S .

w as the custom to bury in the chu r ch or i ts portico ; but in

1 108 A rchbis h o p Ub i l d o L anf r a n chi brought a shipl o ad o f
earth fro m M ount C al vary to P isa and sp r ead it out accord ,

i n g to the dime n sions o f Noah s A rk In 1178 Fr ederic ’

.

Ba rbarossa retur n ed home with fifty galleys laden with more

o f the sacred earth but it w a s n o t till o n e hu n dred years later
,

tha t G iovan n i was app o inted to e n close the space with w al l s .

He shut e d the sac re d ground fr o m the outer world by a

h igh wall plain without but w ith a w ide G o th i c cloist er
, ,

run n ing al l round the interi o r w h o se arches lead in to the ,

grassy G od s A cr e w h e re cypre sses gro w lik e l ivi n g plumes

’
,

above the g r aves a n d roses sce n t the q uiet air The cloister
, .

h as a wide ma r ble floor across which the shadows of the

,

pointe d arches fall .

Gi o va n n i himsel f adorned it with a great a l l egor i ca l sta tue

1
of P i s a ,
which is re pres ented as a q ueen i n a long ma n tl e , ,

holding tw o children to her br east ; her girdle has seven

k nots emblematic of her seven islands four statues of v irtues
,

supp ort the p edestal The w h ole w ork is h e avy and u gly
.
,

yet imposing by re ason of its seeming to mean a great d eal

more than the beholder can u n derstand It wanted still .

’
another century ere Gi o vann i s C ampo Santo w as fill e d w ith
t h e gems o f art so lo n g i ts gl o ry — the fresc o es o f G i o tt o
, ,

Benozzo G ozz ol i O r cagna B uff al m acco & e The an cien t

, , , .

sc ulptures fro m which Ni ocola had draw n inspiration were

placed he re others bei n g added in the course o f time
, .

Some of G iovanni s o wn w o rk s have found an abidin g

’

place here A statue of S P eter ( on e o f his best) h as been

. . .

brought from the ancient piscina i n the Baptistery ; three

female figur e s round a column from his pulpit in the D uomo
a figure o f J us ti ce on a sculptured base and a Vi r gi n a nd ,

1 Il lus t r t di
a e n Perk i ns
’
s T uscan Scul p t o r s,
’
v ol . i .
r 2, 3
. .
 G I O V A N N I P I SAN O . 25

C hi l d , w hich is on e of his h appiest w o rks g rand in form , ,

yet human in feeli ng Ov e r the p r incipal door h e placed a .

tabe rn acle e n cl osing six sai n ts ; his o wn i n scripti on is still

legibl e A D 12 8 8 : T e mp o re Domini Fr i d er i gi a rchi episcopi
,
“
. .

P i sa n i e t Domini Ta r lati p o d es ta ti s O perario Or la n d o Sa rdella

, ,
”
Ioh an n e m agi s tro e d i fi can te .

In 128 3 he we n t to Naples to
1 e n large and st rengthen th e
fortificati ons o f C astel Nu o v o for Cha r l e s of A nj ou to e ffe ct ,

w hich a Francisca n c o nvent had to be dem olished and

re e recte d by Gi o va n n i
-
.

Fr om 12 9 0 to 1 2 99 he w as head of the w orks at Si ena

cathedral o ne o f a long s e r ies o f a r chitects w h o h ad h eld that
,

post f rom the be ginning of the c e n tu r y It is t h ought tha t .

L ore n z o M ai ta n i w h o preceded him desig n ed the fa cade

, , ,

w hich he amplified fo r O r v i e to w hen rem o ved th e r e as C ap o ,

M aest ro 12 9 2 to 13 03 w hil e G i o v anni held the same p ost

, ,

at Siena G i ov an n e P i s a n o w as c re ated a citiz en of Siena

.
,

but i n spite of his h o n our he w as o fte n fi n ed fo r b r each o f

c ont ract for u n d e r ta ki n g o ther w o rks ; yet th e G overnment
s o apprecia te d his ta le n t that h e w as al ways f o rgiven On e .

o f these w o rk s w a s a t omb at P erugia for a P o pe pr obably ,

Martin IV w h o d i e d 1 2 8 5 .It w as destroyed w hen the

, .

Du om o w as enlarged .

'

In 12 9 9 h e w as a gain in P isa w here he carved in i vory a ,

M a d on na a n d Ch i l d n ow i n the sa n ctua r y of the cath edral

,

als o a font i n h as relie f for the church o f San P iet r o in

-

Vinculis near P isa His pupil Leonardo as sisted in the

,
.

w ork .

A bout this time the P i s toj es e gave him a c ommission for a

r ll i i
Sign o e n v
Cu lto d ell e d ue Si cili e, gi es th e date 1 2 6 8 , b u t I
’

v t k V ri v
,

ha s d ate, beca us e G i o an n i sa y s h e was st opped a t Si en a

’
e a en asa

on hi w y b k
s a ac , an d h e was h ead of th e w o rk s th ere i n 1 2 9 0, &c .
26 E A R LY I TA L I AN SC UL P T OR S .

pulpit i n S Andrea for it seems the parish was emul ous of

.
,

the b eauty of a pulpi t recently erected i n the nei ghbouri n g

chu r ch of S G iova n n i E va n gelista by a G erman a r tist
.
1 He .

t ook the form an d desig n s fr o m his father s P isa n p er ga mo ’

e v e n cho osi n g the same subj ects for his rel ie fs w hich h o w , ,

eve r a r e m ore natu r alistic i n style In leavi n g the c opy of the

, .

antique he has retr og r aded a l ittl e in form his figu r es bei n g

, ,

defective in foresho r te n i n g The r e is h o w ever g r eat dramatic .

, ,

feeli n g and inte n se exp r essio n especially i n the M i ss a cre of ,

th e Inn ocen ts Some of the statuettes o f an gels are ve r y

.

good H is m asterpiece in P i s toj a w as th e p i ta f or h oly w ater

.

in S G iovan n i E va n gelista. It rests on t h r e e statues o f

.

Tem pera n c e P rud ence a n d J a stice t h e a n g els a r e suppo r ted

, ,

by fo u r Vi r tues I t i s as classic a l and a l legorical as a n yth i n g

.

by N i oc ola .

The P isan pulpit was begun in 13 02 an d sho w s the same ,

’
signs as that at P i s toj a o f his fath e r s i n flu e n c e w th o u t his ,
i

a n tique te n dency In the relief of t h e B i r th of th e Sa vi ou r

.
,

h e has touched a n e w idea— Which is o ft en see n in late r a r tists

—i n th e appeara n ce o f the angel to t h e sh ep h erd s Th e w ork .

w as fi n ish e d in 1 3 10 The pulpi t w as d e s t r oyed in 162 7 by

.

G iova n n i Battista R i m i n al d i ; s ome pa r ts w e r e used in the

n ew pulpit then co n structed othe r s are dispersed in the ,

2
church an d C amp o Santo .

Gi o v a n ni s fr i end and fello w pupil A r n ol fo d i C ambio

’
-

, ,

w h o had w orked w ith him in Siena i n thei r b oyish days h ad ,

n o w risen to be architect of the fam o us cathedral which was ,

E v t h i s oft r ep ea ted s tory s e m s d oub t ful M il an es i ( An n ot

en -
e
‘

i p 3 14) say s th e M SS of t h e ch u r ch p ro v e t h e p ul p it
. .

’
Vasai i v ol

G io v an n i E van gel i s ta t o h av e b een d on e by Fra G ugl i el m o o f

. . .
, .

of S

P i s a N i cco l a s s ch o l a r i n 1 2 70 a n d n ot by a
.

’
T edes co ,

Si g Fo nt an a h as n o w m ad e a m od e l o f i t as it o rigi n all y s tood an d

, , .

2
,

th e m uni ci p ality of Pi s a are d eh b er a ti n g on h av i ng it r es to red

.

.
 G I O V AN N I P ISAN o . 27

arising li k e an enchanted mountain of gems — albeit dome

less — i n the midst o f Flo r e n ce A rnol fo i n duced his f r iend
.

to visit him and Giovanni added his mite to th e b e auties o f

,

the gr eat c h u r ch by a statue of the M adonna and Ch ild and

a n gels over the side d o or
-
.

In the year 13 05 the Sac r ed C ollege held a nine months

’
,

session at P erugia to d ebate on the cou r se o f acti on to be

pursued after P ope Be n edict XI h ad be en p ois on e d in that .

city by some figs sent thro ugh a cardin al by P h ilip l e Bel .

D ur i n g the session Gi o van n i w as c ommissi oned to make a

tomb to the late P o pe i n P erugia cath ed r al His design w as .

fi n e and n e w at the time th o ugh o f te n s een i n lat er t o mbs

,
.

He raised a G othic canopy on t wist ed c ol um n s car v ed an d ,

i n laid be n eath t h is the e ffi gy of th e P op e lies o n a sa r c o

p h agus w e e pi n g a n g els h old back the cu r tai n s ab o ve him
,
.

The idea w as fi r st c oncei v ed by A r n olfo i n his t omb to

Cardinal de Braye at O rvi e t o Th e C osmati and all the P isan
.

maste r s us e d this fo rm In the e a rlier a ge s the id e a w as th at

.

o f a h o us e for th e t r a n slated s o ul s u ch as th e ea r ly E tr uscan

,

and Lydian tombs 85 0 Next i t w as that of a b ed for th e

, .

sleepe r as in the early E t r uscan tombs then a sa r c op h agus

, ,

for t h e ashes such as th e R oman an d later E truscan u sed

, ,

the idea of th e sl eeper i n his bed bei n g kept up i n e ffigy by

the recli n ing figure on the l i d In the M iddle Ages th e .

sarc op h agus an d bed remain e d but the idea of a heave n ly

,

can o py an d ang el s w as add e d above w hile the sto r y of th e ,

l i fe of the d e ceased was depic te d on the tomb T h is is as .

natural an outg r o w th of th e Ch r i s tian religi on as the myth e

l ogical sce n es on E tr uscan t ombs a re of t h e pagan A m on g .

th e ancient n ations the e ffi gy of the dead su r m o unted all ;

— i t is only the C hristia n who be liev e s in th e re s ur r ecti o n
,
,

that places the canopy and po wers of heaven above his dead
&
28 E A R LY ITA L I A N SC ULP TO RS .

The tomb of St M a rgaret at C ortona is very impressive

. .

Sh e was a sai n t of the M agdalen type a b eautiful but p oor ,

gi r l beloved by a rich count The k insmen o f the c o u n t s

.
’

unloved bet r othed v o w ed revenge on h i m for the slight to

their sister and k illed h i m i n the w ood His faith ful dog
,
.

ran to M arga r et s home and dre w her to the spot where her
’

murdere d l o ver l ay and struc k with horror at the con s e

, ,

q u en ces o f sin she

,
made her vo w s o f penitence o ver his
l ifeless b ody l iving ever after wards s u ch a life of sanctity
,

that she was can on ized at her death H er church w hich .

,

Ni ocola and Giovanni j oin tly built stands high up on a h ill

,

o verl ook i n g the to wn on w hat was i n E truscan d ays the arx

,

o f the city . I t has long bee n half ruined but is n ow under ,

going restoration w ith a great pr ofusion of colour and stucco .

The body o f the saint lies beneath the high al tar on a silver
sarcophagus b ut G iovann i P i s an o s monument is on brackets
,
’

011 the northern wall o f the transept some of the reliefs

w hich on ce adorned it consisting of tw o ro w s of m edallion
,

h e ads o f sai n ts bei n g n e w placed benea th a modern statue of

,

the sa int in a n iche in the s outhern wall The tomb as it .

st ands n o w consists o f the sarcoph agus on w hich the e ffigy o f

S M a r garet is lying peacef ully — her faithful d og at her feet
. .

A ngels support a heavy slab above her apparently the cover ,

o f her tomb the design of this gives a se n se o f o ver weigh t

which i s ve ry unpl e asing The relie fs in front of the sarco
.

a us are the M agd a le n was h i ng th e Sa v i ou r s feet and St

’
h
p g ,
.

M a rgar et ta k i ng th e p en i ten ti a l h a bi t ; she is giving her

hea r t to a n g el s who h ea r it up to heave n .

’
O ne of Giovanni s work s has been discovered of late years
in the Villa Bri gnole Sale i n Voltri whither it was transferred
-

f r o m the rui n ed church of San Francesco at C astelletto near

G eno a. It i s th e tomb of the P rincess M a rgheri ta , w ife of
3 0 EAR LY I TAL I A N SC UL PT O R S .

for E n r ico Scrovegni did This is the more n ot die till 13 2 8 .

p roba b le as w e fi nd Nicc olo and San e were not e m pl oyed on

the to w er of P r at o w hich they continued after G i o va n ni s
,
’

d eath before 13 40 w hen a subscription w as set on foo t for

, ,

t h e bells and the outer pulpit was not beg u n by the m till
,

13 5 4 t o
The pla c e o f Gi o vann i s sepulch re is as doubt ful as th e ’

date of h i s d eath H ist oria n s agr ee that he w as buri e d

.

h o n ou r ably wi th h i s father in the C am po Sant o at P is a But .

there is a stone in the fa c ade of the A rchbishop s palace at ’

Siena inscribed Hoe est s ep ul ch r um M agi s tr i J ohan n is

”
q uondam m agi s tri Nicolai e t de ej us E redi b u s This might .

h ave bee n prepare d by h i m w hile l ivin g at Siena but as he ,

d i ed at P isa his fello w citizens would not give up the honour

-

o f havi n g his tomb in their city .

G i o vanni although n o t endo w ed w ith so high an artistic

,

genius as h i s father did great se r vice to ar eh i e cture in

.

b r i n gi n g the G o th i c style i n to Italy a taste he may have ,

gai n ed f r o m t h e many G erma n architects at that time in

Italy Some T e d eschi w o r ked w ith h i m at Siena an d
.
“ ~
”

O rvieto there w ere also a Guglielmo di In s p r uk w h o

assisted Bona n no in t h e t o wer of P isa ; E n ric o G munden
( c a l l ed by the Italians G a m od i a
) who desig n ed M ilan ,

cathedral ; J ohannis Fa rab el l o de A llemania w h o work e d ,

at S P etronio i n Bol og n a ; and a J acopo Tedesco It

. .

w ould be int e r e ti n g to trace “ ”

s Quegli Tedeschi as Vasari ,

calls them an d p r ove w hether they were really G e r ma n s

,

w h o came to the s o uth brin i n g grand G othic desig n s from , g

their ow n cathedrals or whether they were only the remai n s

,

“
Jacobus Magi s tri R i eti un d er on e of th e angels He m igh t
”
ha v e

as s i s t ed G i o v a n n i o r s cu l p t u r e d t h t p ar ti cul a r s ta tuett e for h i m

.
,

,
a .

1 B i an ch in i
Mem ori e d el la Sacra Cin t ol a
’
.
,
 G IO V A NN I P SA I NO . 3 1

of sch ool ; for th e inhabita n ts of N orth L om

th e C om aci n e
ba rd y w hich bo rders on the Tyr ol we r e in th ose days call e d
”
Tedeschi .

G i o vanni had several scholars some of w hom surpassed

,

h i m in fame — H is son Ber n a rdo who is little kn o w n as ,

a sculp to r but be c ame cap o m a es tr o of the Du omo at P is a

,

f r om 1 2 9 9 to 13 03 1—
the Sien e s e m aste rs A g osti n o an d ,

A gn ol o of Siena A gn ol o and C i e lo di Ventura Tino or L ino

di C amai no J ac op o da Pi s toj a ; and g r eatest o f all A n d rea
, ,

P isano thr ough w h om the i n flu ence of N i ccol a in sculpture

,

spread to Fl orence as A rn olfo had brought his architecture

, .

1
Mil an esi, Docum en ti p er l a Sto ri
a d ell A rt e Sen ese,
’
v ol . i p
. . 148 .
 CH A P TER I V .

SCHOL RS O F A N IC CO L A .

ICCOLA had five pupils besides hi s son G iovanni

Ar nolfo di C ambio w h o made himself famous by
,

the Duomo of Flore n ce ; L apo Gore and D on ate di C i uccio

, ,

Ci u ti and Fra G uglielmo A gnelli a Dominica n monk , .

A R N O LFO D I C A MB I O born 12 3 2
,
di ed 13 10 Vasari .

roman ces a gr eat deal about a certain J ac opo Tedesco w h o , ,

c oming to Florence was ca l led L apo and built man y famous

, ,

palaces and left a s on A r n olfo A l l these first pages of the

, .

o l d ch r on icler may be exp u nged L apo was a fellow stud e n t

.
-

w ith A rnolfo w h o was the son of Cambio of C o lle in Val

,

d E l sa ; his mothe r s name was P erfe tta

’ ’
His position in .

’
N i ccol a s studio j udgi n g from his age w ould have been rather
, ,

that of a j ou r neyman than a pupil He was late in reaching .

fame ; for the first time we hear of him as hel ping in the
Sie n a pul pit i n 12 6 6 , Secum ducat Senas Arn ol f um e t
Lap u m suos d i s ci p ul os — h c w as more th an thirty years ol d
,
.

When the P isani sculptured the fountain at P eru gia Ar nol fo ,

w as in the employ of C harles of A n j ou because he could not ,

accep t the position as on e of the architects t h ere without

 SC HO L AR S O F N IOO OL A . 3 3

the pe rm is s i on o f th e k ing or of Hugo his V icar at R ome , .

O n Sept 10 12 78 Charles ans w er e d the petition of the

.
, ,

P erugian s and n ot only all o w ed A rnolfo to stay but sent

, ,

som e m arbl e s as a gift to w ard s the fou n da tion O n Feb 4 . .

,

12 8 1 is a n ote of payment f o r 10 l i re 4 soldi to A rn ol fo

, ,

f or t w enty days wor k at the fountain 1 It i s di fficult to

’
.

rec on cile this late payment w ith C ha rles s permission in 1 2 77 ’

but the b o oks of expenses for the in termediate years whi ch ,

might have explai n ed i t are missi n g , .

In 1 2 9 1 9 2 he was work ing at Or vieto ( before the cathedral

-

w as fou n ded ) in the church o f S Domenico on the t omb of .

,

Cardinal de Braye w h o died in 12 9 0 It is a mixture of

, .

m osaic sculpture and architectu r e ass i m i l ati n g to the southern

, , ,

a r t which he studied w hile at Naples with C harles of A n j o u .

The statue lies on an inlaid sarcophagus a Gothic tabe rn acle

r ises above it on twiste d pill ars In this is a charming .

statue of the M adonna enthro n ed the o n ly d e fect of w hich

is a slight w ant of balance in the figu r e of the in fant C hrist
w h o is resti n g on on e knee S D o minic s tands on on e . .

side of the Virgin and Cardi n al de B r aye on the other is

,

bein g presented to her by a saint A beauti f ul tabern acle by .

A r n ol f o existe d till 1 8 2 5 — whe n it w as burned — i n S P aolo .

fu ori l e M u r a at Hom e It w as a commissi on f r om Abbot

.

Bar th ol om m eus It is dated 12 8 5 Hoe O pus fecit Arn ol fus

.
,

— cum socio P et r o .

This partner P ietro is n ow here else menti oned in c onnec

tion w ith his master and Cic ogna r a prop oun d s a theory
,
2

th at he was on e of th e Co smati j udgin g from the similarity ,

i n style of the tombs of A rn olfo w ith those of the Cosmati .

He d oes n ot give A rn o lfo the credi t of the monument to P ope

1
M ilan es i , ‘
An n ot . V riasa ,
’
v ol . i p
. . 3 08 no e t .

C i cogn ara Stor i a del l a Scu ltur ch p 2 65 6

’
2 a, v ol 111 117.
-
. . . . .
,

D
34 EA R LY I TAL I AN SC UL P T O R S .

Boniface VI II in S P ietro nor o f the altar in S M aria

. .
, .

M aggiore whi ch he says a r e all by J acopo C osmo or hi s

,

conf r er es .

’
H aving thus brie fl y noted Arn ol fo s claims to fame in
other cities we turn to Florence where every street speaks of
, ,

hi m . To her he gav e all the power of his m at ur ed genius .

He went there j ust at the time when the city O f bu r ghers

had risen to wealth and with their prosperity came the wish,

to make a lasting use of it for the glory of the city I n ,

.

12 9 4 the M inorite Friars led the g r eat church building -

movement by erecti n g a la r ge church on the site of their

small a n d ancient on e of Santa Croce A rn olfo w as chosen .

as architect ; the first st one w as laid before the whole

Sig n oria and the ecclesiastical rulers and fr om his design
1
,

arose that magni fi cent mausoleum H e had already built a .

fine mark et or granary in the C o r so degli A dima r i — n ow Via

C alzaioli —on the si te of an ancient L ombar d church
,
H is .

market place was built in the style of a L ombard Br ol etta

-

( town hall )
-
on colo n n ades o f arches only his arches were ,

Gothic instead of round The ol d M inorite church was .

ca l led S M ichele and th e g ra n ary w as named the O r ( i e

.
,
. .

h or reum ) S M ichele
”
A cen tury later O r cagn a again chan ged
. .

i t to a church which keeps the ol d name , .

Simul taneously with the M inorite Friars the Republi c ,

itself was moved to build a la rge church on the site of the

on e dedicated to S Repar ata their patron sain t .In hi s .

design for this Ar nol fo surpassed himself and qu ite ful fi ll ed ,

“
the des ire of the Republic to renovate S Repar ata in a .

style Of magnificence w hi ch neither the indus try nor power

”
of man can su rpass To compass this a ta x was made on
.

1 Vil l an i li b
,
. V III . ch . vn . p . 3 49 . G ual an d i , 4th ri
se es , p . 1 02 ,
t
no e 9 .
 SC HO L A RS O F N IC OO L A . 3 5

imported g ods besides a p ll tax of two s oldi a year The

o ,
o -

\Vool Company t ook the management of the a ff air and ,

A rn ol fo s vari egated m a rbl e m ou n tai n beg an to arise sl o w ly

’

taki n g fo rm an d bei n g cl o thed in beauty du r i n g tw o or

,

th r ee cen turies for the architect did n o t live to see his w or k

far ad v an ced . Th e design w as u n ique an d sho wed the ,

v a r i ed i n fluen ces which h ad successively formed his gen ius .

He to ok the shape of a L atin cr oss fro m the R omans ,

the w i n d ow s and flying buttresses fr om G othic masters the ,

cluste r of d omes f rom the Romanesque builders an d fi n ally ,

the l o v c of c ol o u r fr o m th ose Sa r acenic dec or ati ons of southe r n

churches w h ich the P isa n i l o v ed The mosaic cov er ed .
-

Duomo ( n ow call ed Sta M a r ia d el Fio r e) became a scho ol

.

o f sculpture ; the entire hist ory of Italian a r t may be read

in i ts ma rbles — fr om Gi o van n i P i san o s Il l a d om i a ove r the ’

weste r n door to M ichela n gel o s P i etd o v er the altar o f the

,
’

choi r. In 12 9 8 A rnolfo began the fa cade which Gi otto

,

e n r iched in 13 3 4 A n oth er f ron t in Renaissance style w as

.

begu n i n 15 8 8 but lef t u n fi n ished an d De Fabris has ,

n ow
( 18 8 1) nea r ly half completed the n e w fr ont which

ca rr ies o u t A rn ol fo s se n time n ts w ith g ood a r t

’
.

In 1 2 9 3 A rn olfo coated the Bapti s tery w ith coloured

ma rbles a ll the ol d m onuments and Roman an d E truscan
,

tombs w hich were rou d it bei n g remo v ed and in 12 9 6 he

n
1
,

built the for t r ess of C as te l Fran ce in Val d Arn O ’

.

It w as on Dec 3 0 12 98 th at the Commune decre ed the

.
, ,

building of the P alazz o Vecchi o A rn ol fo s plans were much .

’

cramped because the Signo ri a w ould not all o w any part of th e

palace to rest on the site of th e dest r oyed houses of the hated
Ub erti the supe r stiti ous city h olding that place accursed
,
.

To this reason the fortress palace o w es its i r regularity of

1 Vi ll an i li b
, . v iii . ca
p 3 . .
3 6 E A R LY ITAL I AN SC UL P T O R S .

form In the bell to w er however his genius h ad full sway

.
-

, , ,

an d a m ore lovely turret was never reared in air .

A rnolfo died in 13 10 His death is thus recorded in the .

necrology of San ta Repa r ata “

IIII i d us ( Ill a r ti i ) obi i t
Il l a gi s ter A r n olf us d e l op er a d i s a ncta R ep ar a ta M C C U
” 1
X
’
.

I n G iotto s exquisite fresc o i n Santa Croce of the monk s

’

wee pi n g at the death of S Francis Ar n ol fo s like n ess is to .

,
’

be seen i n on e of the tw o m en talk i ng His statue by .

P am p al on i a modern sculptor is on the piazza O pposit e the

, ,

cathedral He left tw o s on s Guid uccio and A lberto ; the

.
,

latter was a sculptor but never rose to fame ,

.

FRA G uG LIE LM o —said to have been of the noble famil y

o f the Dell A gnello on e of whom w as D oge o f P isa — w as
’
,

b o r n about 12 3 8 and placed ea rly under the instruction of

,

Nicc ola P isano In 1 2 5 7 he took religious vows in the

.

Dominican convent of S C ateri n a at P isa O ne of his fi r st . .

work s was to build the chu r ch of S Domenico for t h e .

convent for which it is probable Ni ocola ga v e the design H e

, .

also restored the convent in 12 72 .

In 12 6 6 he was w ith Ni ocola at Bologn a assisting hi m in ,

the m onument to S Dominic ; a work in which he as a .

,

mo n k of the Or der would have had especial inter est His , .

reliefs of the Vi s i on of Hon or i ns IIL & c wh i ch are on the -

,
.
,

bac k of the sarcophagus are certainly much i n ferior to those ,

of Niccola bein g too crowded ina r tistically grouped and

, , ,

badly finished He w as p r esent a t the translatio n of the

.

2
sacred relics i n to this urn an d the annals of the conve n t of ,

S Caterina confess a pi o us f r aud of which he was guilty

. .

Under pretence of assisting in moving the relics he managed ,

1
Mi l anes i ,
‘
An n o t . V r as a i , V OL i p . 2 90 N ote from ‘
A r h i vi
c o

ll p e ra d e l
. .

’
D u om o
’
de O .

1
Pad re Ma ch es e, r An n ah , &c .
, V ol . I d oc
. . iii p. . 5 45 .
 C H AP T E R V .

A N DR E A AN D NIN O P S I AN O .

these tw o men the P is an school culmi n ated and to ,

A ndrea the pupil of Gi o vanni is d u e the h onour o f th e

, ,

Renaissan ce of sculpt ure in Florence He w as the friend o f .

G iotto and to his chisel w e are i n debted for a la r ge portion

’

o f the statues and reliefs w ith w hich G iott o s a r ch itecture is

’

e nriched .

A nd r ea born 1 2 73 was the son of Ugoli n o M i ni a notary

, , ,

o f P ontedera From his epitaph in the D u om o and some

.
,

other ol d documents w e find that he w as also a gold w ork r

,
- e .

A s he was not in Giov anni I i san o s studi o till 1299 to 13 05

’ ’

w h en he is mentioned as fa m u
“ 1 ”
l us m a g i s tr i J oh a n n i s i t is ,

pr o bable his earlier ye ars w ere employed in his apprenticeship

to that busi n ess His ea r liest w orks in marble are on e or
.

t w o statues in the chu r ch of S M a r ia della Spina at P isa ; .

an d Vasari
2 asserts that in 13 06 he built the ca s tle of S .

Ba r nabas in M ug ello called the Scarperia ,

.

H is next authe n tic w ork the south d oors of the B aptistery

,

at Florence w as begun i n 1 3 08 and it is said that he

, ,

w o r ked at them f or 2 2 years It is p oss i ble that some “

part of this time may ha ve b een Spent in Ve n ice where ,

1
C i am p i , A r hic v o i d el D uom o d i Pi sa .
’
1 Vit a An d r ea Pi s a m .
 AN D R E A AN D N IN O P SAI NO . 3 9

Va sari says he did some statues for S M ark s and designed

, .
’

th e a r senal w h ich Cale n dari o the Venetian a f ter wards fi n ished .

There is ho w ever no di rect pr o of of his w ork in Venice th e

, , ,

o nly c ollater l on e is the fact o f his empl oying a Venetian to

a

cas t his gates for th e Fl orentine Baptistery the commissi on ,

for w hich w as given in 13 3 0 .

It is said that his friend G i otto gave him the design and ,

tr uly th e scenes from the life of S J ohn in t we n ty c ompa r t .

,
~

me n ts a r e really and truly Giotte sque pictu res in relief

, .

The r e is such a grace of attitude decorum elegance of drapery , , ,

a n d t ru e se n timent as w e r e at that time only to be seen in

,

th e pai n tings of the great m aster Andrea p o ss essed a po w er .

o f telli n g a sto r y touchingly and eff e cti vel v with o n ly a few

figures w hich far su r pa ssed N i ccol a s cro w ded c ompositi ons

,
’
.

Th e N a ti vi tg Vi si ta ti on B u r i a l of St J oh n and B ap ti s m of
, ,
.
,

th e Sa vi our are the m ost beautiful The eight compa r tments

, .

at the ba se h ave allegorical re p r esentatio n s of the Vi r tues all ,

truthfully expressed and artistically draped These gat es .

fo rm the li n k be tw een the an ci e nt o n es of B on an no of P isa ,

and th e culmination of the metallic art in those of Ghiberti .

A ndrea w as as sis ted i n the casti n g by M aestro L e on a r d o del

fii A vanzo da V en e xi a w hilst P iero di D on ate L ippo Dini
, , ,

and P iero di Jacopo goldsmiths helpe d to polish and gild

, ,

th e r e lie f s 1
’
An drea s son N i n o als o served hi s apprentice
.

ship here and his taste and style were for med un d er the
,

in fluence of Giotto .

The wax m o del w as fi n ished on April 2n d 13 3 0 but w as , ,

not cast ti ll 13 3 2 w hen the doo r s came out of L e onard o s

’

hands so crooked as to be useless and Andrea himself had to ,

take them in hand and by 13 3 6 th e y w e re erected the

,

m arble for the door step b e i ng b r ought f r o m C arrara for th e

-

1
Vi l l an i l ib x
, . . cap . 176 .
40 E A R LY IT AL I AN SC UL P T O R S .

purpose: Their i nau guration was a grand day in Florence .

The w hole Sign or ia Gonfaloniere and populace came in , ,

p r ocession , with th e am b a ssad or of Naples to d o them ,

,

honour 1
.

A fter this A ndrea turned his attention to larger but

, ,

unfortunately more pe r ishable work s G iotto was n ow , .

archi tect of the cathedral and on e of his fir st plans in 1 3 3 4 ,

was to enrich Arn ol fo s fa c ade with G oth i c canopies and ’

niches contai ni ng statues 2

O f these Andrea furnished the .

statue of P op e B on ifa ce VIII a haughty pope w h o aimed .

at being ruler of princes G i ot to and Dante wer e both .

present among the strangers in Rome at hi s j ub i lee

in 13 01 when he rode in royal purple heralds bearin g
, ,

his sword and sceptre before h i m Dante has put his .

impressions of the scene i n tO his canto xviii ‘

.
,

an d G iotto has embodied his memories o f the man with ,

’
A ndr ea s assistance in this statue w hich was enthroned, ,

over th e cathedral d o or A las & he n ow sits green an d neg .

l ected in the Ori cel l ari garden holding ou t his m utilated ,

arms in utter helplessness Besides this A nd r e a sculptu r ed .

,

S P eter and S P a ul Fo ur P r op h ets Fo ur D octor s S

. .
, , , ,

In 15 8 8 when in Francesco de
’
L a wr ence an d S Step h en, . .
,

M edici s time the fa c ade was removed these statues w e r e

’
,

dispersed Four of them m uch in j ured k eep guard at the

.

foot of the avenue of the P oggio Imperiale ; s ome of the

r eliefs an d sculptures are in the amphitheatre of B oboli gar d ens ,

an d several statues moulder in the Strozz i and Ori cel l ari

gardens .

The scul ptures done by Andrea for G iotto s Camp an i le have ’

1 Morron i , v ol . 11. p . 3 67 .

9 Th e p lan i s to b e s een in a fresco by Poccetti i n th e fi rt

s l it
c os e r of

S Mar co
. .
 A N D R EA AN D N IN O P SAI NO . 41

been more fortunate A bove the belt of hexagons in which

.

G iotto d esigned w hat M r Ruskin s o happily calls his hymn

.

”
o f labour A ndrea carved a li n e of lo zenge shaped reliefs
,
-

those on the w es t re p r es e n t th e se v en Ca r d i na l Vi r tues th e ,

seven Wor ks of M e r cy are on the south the s even P l a nets on ,

the eastern side and the s even Sa cr a m en ts on the northe rn

, ,

these fo rming w ith those of Giott o a d ouble belt of gems

clasping the gl ow i n g tow er His also are the fo ur prophe ts .

which stand ab o ve th e relie fs on the south front .

In An d r ea sculpture — which N i ccol a e m b u ed with pagan

,

ism an d hi s son w ith ideali ty— bec omes Christian yet with
, ,

great n atural truth in mod ell i n g .

In 13 47 he be came C apo M aestro of the Duomo at O rvieto

his s on N i n e first w o r ked the r e un der him and th en suc ,

ceed ed him The sculptures w hich most show his h and are
.

the coloured Vi rgi n a nd Ch i l d supp or ted by six an gels over

the centre door and the cr ea ti on of A d a m a nd E ve in w hi ch
, ,

th e graceful unco n v e n tional composition is quite in Giotto s

’

Sp irit Andrea died ab out 13 48 or 13 49 His tomb w as said

. .

to be i n the Du omo of Florence but it has disappea r ed , .

Besides Nino he left anothe r son To mmaso w h o alth ough , ,

he never rose to great fame w as k no w n in his day as both ,

a r chitect and sculp tor His chief patron was the Doge D ell
.
’

A gnell o of P isa for who m To mm aso designed a palace and

, ,

pai n ted two caskets H e m ade also a ma rble a n cona for the
.

church of S Francesco which i s n ow in the Campo Santo

.
, .

It consists of six G othic niches co n taining statuettes o f sa ints , ,

an d a predella covered w ith h as reliefs The gene ral effect is -

.

good ; but the art will n ot bear cl o se inspection bein g coarse , ,

h ard an d w anting i n feel i ng

,
.

N in o gave his talent especially to Sculptu re n o d oubt

h i s taste was trai ned in his ear ly work un der h i s father
 42 EA RL Y ITAL IAN SC UL P T O R S .

in the Baptiste r y gates and the constant artistic exam pl e ,

o f their great frie n d Gi otto N i n e w as th e fi r st of the .

P isani w h o recog n ized the M adonna as a w oman and mother ,

instead of rende r ing her acco r ding to N i ccol a s con cep ,

’

tion as a q ueen W hile still i n Florence h e sculptured

, .

the Al a d onn a a nd two a n yel e o ver the d oor of the cano n ry of

the Duomo and the on e in the M i n erb etti cha pel in S M aria
,
.

Novella which is n o w half hidden i n a niche under the

,

organ loft These were his first wo rk s and show a g r eat

-
.

finish of style ; he obtained a softness of fle s h which

no previous sculptor h ad reached H e had realism and .

yet a ff ectation but n o vulgarity ; his statues sho w sign s of

,

having been pain ted and gilded Th e most charming o f all .

his M adonnas is the on e i n fr ont of t h e fa c ade of the C hurch

o f the Spina at P isa whither he r etur n ed t o live after his ,
’
father s death It is extre m ely n aturalistic but shows most
.
, ,

intensely the sanctity and ecstasy of m oth e rhood The Child .

is suck ling an d nestling close to the breast rubb i ng on e li ttle ,

fee t on the other in enj oyment O ver the high altar of the .

Spi n a a r e three niches containing the Vi rg i n a n d Ch i l d

standing between S P eter a nd J oh n The Virgin i s very . .

charm i n g ; she i s holding a rose and the Child is reach i n g ,

for w ard to grasp it In the S P i etr o he h as sculptured his

. .

’
father s portrait An A n nu nci a ti on in tw o statues on the altar
.
,

o f S Caterina in P isa c o mposed of m a w kish and sentimental

.
,

figures has been att r ibute d to him It is signed and dated

, .

13 70 but N i n e died before

,
as the foll o w ing d ocu
’
ment cited by P rof Bon ai n i sho ws Tommaso s patron th e
, .
, .
,

l r
Th e two s tatu es we e m ade by N i n e for th e ch u ch of S Zen o ne, r
l r k
.

an an ci e n t Ca m a d ol ese abb ey T h ey we e b o ugh t by t h e m on s o f San

.

r r r
G ego i o, f om wh o m th ey p ass ed t o t h e Dom i n ican s of S Cate i na r
Ml
. .

i anes e,
‘
A n uo t ,
’
v ol . i p
. . 49 5 .
 N D R EA
A AN D N n ro P I SA NO . 43
’
D oge Dell A gn ell o had in his lifetime ord ered N i n e to
,

sculpture hi s t omb N i n o did n ot li v e to receiv e the payme n t

for it for the A nziani family of P isa mad e a p r o visio n of
,

“
payment Dec 8 13 68 to Andrea figl i uol o d el gi a N i n e
,
.
, ,

Scultore o a T ommas o pel n ip o te 2 0 fi or i n i d o r o r es i du e d e l

’

p rezzo a Nino d o v uto p el s e p olc r o che il D oge d ell Agn ello si ’

”
era da se ord i n ata .
 C H AP TE R V I .

B A LD UCC I O I
DI P S A .

all Andrea Pi san o s scholars Balduccio di P isa w as

’
,

the on e who r ose to the greatest eminence or per ,

haps it w ill be more j us t to say the on e w h o had the greatest

,

opportunities and whose works have been best p r eserved

,
.

He was born at P isa in the early part of the four tee n th centu r y ,

and during his youth worked princip ally in Tuscany w h e r e ,

he sculptured a pulpit for the church of S M aria al P rato .

at C asciano and the monument of G ua m eri u s son of Cas

, ,

tr ucci o C ast racani L ord of Li reca in the C hurch of S

, , .

Francesco at Sarzana in 13 2 2 This work inferior as it was

, .
, ,

brought him that patr onage without which art is often lost
to the w orld .

The L ord of L ucca and A zzone Viscon ti Lord of M ilan , ,

had cont r acted a friendship dati n g from the b a ttle of Al to

asci o in w hich they fought the Guelphs together
p .

C astruccio afte r w ards libe r ated A zzone from prison at M onza ,

and gave hi m refuge in Tuscany ; h i s stay there gave him a

taste for art for on his return to power in Mi lan h e became
,

a great patron especially encouraging Tuscan artis ts of whom

, ,
46 EA R LY ITAL I AN SC UL PT O R S .

t r ust i n her e yes ,isespeciall y beautiful W inged animals pl ay .

at her feet emblematic of the s oa r i n g of ea r thl y aspiratio n s

,
.

P r ud en ce has a triple face sca n n ing the past present and , ,

future be fore action Sph i nxes gua r d her steps

. .

Temp er a n ce gracef ully draped and p osed pours water

, ,

from a vase Ivy cro wns her veiled head

. . .

For ti tud e carries the sun in her ha n d and l ions crouch at ,

her feet .

You ng lambs rub lovingly the robes of Ch a r i ty with her

tw o babes .

Obed i ence meekly bears the yok e on her neck and F ai th ,

subdues dragons with her cr os s an d holy ve r se .

The sarc o phagus is covered with six h as reliefs of scenes -

f r om the life of S P eter M artyr but of m uch less excellence

.
,

than th e statues Betw een th e se are figures of S S P eter and

. .

P aul w ith other saints and doctors A G o thi c shrine the .

,

pinnacles of w h ich are finished with statuettes surmounts all , ,

and on this is a grou p of the M adonna and Child enthr oned ,

w ith SS D o minic and P eter M artyr at her f e et

. .

If the reliefs sho w that Balduccio was not quite master of

the technicalities of his professio n the design p r oves him to ,

have had a love of harm ony an d a deep revere n ce for the

mystery of religion besides this he lived in an age of
symbolism .

“
A z zo Visconti died in 1 3 3 9 when the A rk was com
p l e ted and Balduccio w as commissi oned to mak e his tomb
, .

In this the sarcophagus is supported on two c olumns the

figure of A zzo reclines on the lid with angels watching over
him the sid es a r e sculptured w ith typical reliefs I t is still .

to be see n in a mutilated state in the gallery of th e M archese

Tr i v u l z i o f M ilan .

To Balduccio is attributed also th e G othic monument to

 I
uxr n ucc ro D I P SA . 47

Lanfranco Settal e an Augusti n e m onk ( this was not the

,

Be ato Setta l a w h o w s first ge n eral of the order and died in

:
,

The sarc ophagus i s set against the w all on c ons oles ;

the deceased li es on it benea th a curtain The relief in front
.

sho ws him as a pro f essor of the ol ogy am ongst his sch olars
-

A door on ce existed in a church in M ilan called S M aria

, .

i n Brera which w as ad orned w ith sculptu res by Balduccio it

,

is n ow destroyed but Cic og n ara speaks very slightingly of it

,

fro m an artistic p oi n t o f vie w

.

Balduccio di ed in abo ut 13 47
.
 C H AP TER VI I .

THE ATI
C O SM .

HE Cosmati ,
wh o
have be en menti oned as conte m poraries
of the P isani w ere the founders of a s ch ool of scul p
,

ture at Rom e i n the middle of the t welfth century The

o
.

Roman revival introduced by them lasted a century and a

half during w hich time th e tabe rn acles and tombs whic h they
,

raised were dec ora te d with mosaics and discs of porphyry ,

giallo antico rosso a n tico and serpentine from the ancie n t

, ,

buildi n gs and marble pavem ents of ol d Rome This love of .

’
col oured mosaic seems like N i ccol a s art bias to have been
, ,

de r iv e d from the s outh for the first w ork s of the earliest

, ,

C osma L aure n tius an d his so n s L uca and G iovanni w ere the

, ,

m osaic pavem en t in th e D u omo of A nagni and the inlaid ,

front of the cathedral of C ivita C astellana in 12 2 0 We have .

me n tioned a Socio P iet r o who w orked with A rnolfo in the

,

tabernacle of S P aol o fuori l e mura C i cogn ara s theo r y

. .
’

t h at this partner P iet r o was on e of the Cosmati is founded o n

the simila r ity of that w ork an d the to mb of Bo n iface VI I I .
,

in S P ietro at R ome said to be a work of Arn ol fo s

.
,
’

s ubse qu en t to that school N ow there is an inscription in

.

t h e clo i s ters of the s ame church of S P aolo to this e ffect :

.
 THE cos n Ar r . 49

Hoe opus rt
R om a carde b eavi t
a e sua q u em

N atus de Capua Petrus oli ni pri m i ti av i t

A rd ea qu em ge n u i t qui bus abb as v i x i t i n ann i s
C tera di s pos u i t b en e p rov i da d es tra Joh an n i s
e

Hoe opus ex teri us p re cun cti s pe l l et i n u rb c &c ,

”
.

r
F om this w hich seems to poi n t to P etrus as an a tist lately
,
r
c ome fro m C apua and to Joh ann i s or G i o vann i ( Cosmati ) as a
,

f oll ow e r o r successor w e s eem to get a pro o f that the same

,

m er idi on a l art w ith its l o v e of c ol our and mosaic as N i ccol a

, ,

imp o r ted to P isa was b r ought to R om e by th e C osmati

,
.

Gi ova n ni C osma w as c ontempo ra r y with A rn ol fo an d in ,

12 9 8 sculptu r ed the tomb of Bis h o p G on sal v i in S M aria .

M a ggi ore Tw o oth er membe r s of the same family Adeodatus

.
,

and Pasquale Cosma w orked in the same church in 12 99 , .

There a r e a g reat many tombs by the Cosmati in and ab out

Rome such as th at of Ca r d i nal C ons a l oe in S M a r ia M aggio r e
,
-

, .

by Gio v a n n i in 12 99 of D ur a nd B i sh op of Al en d e 13 04 all , , ,

di stinguish ed by th e mixtu r e of col ou red mosaic w ith sculp

tu r e and by the for m w h ich at that age marked th e Tuscan
,

m or tua r y m onume n ts— the a n gel born e ca n opy above the -

effi gy on th e sa r cophag us Ci cogn ara s conclusion that the .

’

C osm ati w e re heirs to the style of the Tuscan s is disproved

l
,

by chron ol ogy the fi rst maste r s i n each school havi n g been

,

c ontempora r y .

Is it not p r obable then that b oth sc h ools derived thei r style

0

fro m the mosaic deco rated sculptu r e in the s outh at th at

-

pe r iod l — the father of Ni ccol a b ei n g called P iet ro di A pulia

‘
'

an d the first sculpt or of the Cosma family being P et r us

”
n atus de Capua .

1
Ci cogn a r a,
‘
Sto ri a d el l a Scultu r
a,
’
v ol . III . ch . iv p. . 2 63 .
LO R ENZO G m s nnr r .
 LO R E NZ O G HIBE RTI .

CH A P T E R I .

I NT ROD UCTORY .

ETWEE N the decli n e of the P isan scho ol at the end of

the fourte enth ce n tu ry an d the rise of the Florentin e ,

nea rly half a centu ry elapsed du r in g w hich sculptu r e as an

, ,

art slumbered
,
. Orcagn a reared h i s chu r ch of O r San
M ichele and the grace ful L oggi a de L anzi but the hands
’
,

w hi ch w er e destined to ado rn these buildi n gs with thei r

p r iceless beauties of ca r ven ston e w ere not yet in existence
, .

O r cagn a hi mself heralded the Renaissance — as th e first red

st r eak heralds the da w n — in his sculp tures on the altar of
O r San M ichele .

The scho ol which Giotto founded was essentially one of

paintin g The great master h ad so filled the hearts of the
.

Fl orenti n es with th e ma r v ell ous Ch ristian truths which h e

‘
'

impres sed on th ei r wal l s in colour that A rt— which seems to

'

'

E z
52 EA R LY I TAL IAN SC UL P T O R S .

lie dormant in most nations ti l l the right spring is touched

to awaken i t —a r ose and found f ull expression in the silent
,

harmonies of colour .

Thus w hile the M em m i the Gaddi and others were all

, , ,

follo w in g the steps of Gi ott o in painti n g and even Orcagn a ,

left o ff buildi n g to paint Dan tesque frescoes — no worthy ,

disciple of Andrea P isano w as fo u n d .

During the fourteenth cen tury so barren of sculpture in ,

Florence on e of the pl as ti c a r ts flourished still — that of g old

, ,

worki n g an a r t which is sure to p r osper in the early days of

a nati on s wealth : that time when riches a re valued for
’

themsel ves and w hen befo re a pe r fect ba n k ing s v s te m an d

, ,

commercial security a r e established w ealth is more easily ,

and safely k ept ii i the form of personal o rnament .

This custom w hich filled Fl or en ce w ith g oldsmiths fi ve

,

hundred years ago still li n gers am on gst the Italian peasantry

, ,

who carry the savings of generations in the c oral and pearl

necklaces the gold ri n gs and ear drops and the c oronal of
,
'
-

sil ver hair pi ns w hich they w ear on festal days So lucrative

-
.

w as the goldsmith s a r t and so high did their guild stand

’

in Fl or ence at this time t h at fathers w ere all anxious to ,

appre n tice thei r s on s to the craft .

P ainters had no guild but w ere classed w ith the ap oth e ,

ca ries
. It w as o n ly in th e foll ow ing centu r y that the
A cademy o f St L uke w as f ounded but it never became a
.
,

recog n ised A rte i n Flo r enc e .

Th e influ en ce of Giotto s teachi n g w as so great as to

’

overcome the Bu rghers bias in fa v our of g old O ne by on e

’
.

the a r tists whose taste s we r e dev e loped by desig n i n g for gold

ornaments found their ideas cramped in the limits set by the
,
‘

precious m etal and w ere drafted off to the r nks which

, a

'

swell ed the army of t he Renaissance of painting and thus ,

 C H AP T E R I I .

G E IBE RTI s
’
F RSI T W O RKS.

HIBERTI who was bo r n in

,
the son of w as

Cione di Ser B u on accor s o G hiberti and Fiore his w ife

‘

Some authors have cast a slur of illegitimacy on h i m as he ,

generally called himself by the name of his stepfather Bartolo , .

Indeed a secret accusation was made to that e ffect in 1443

( when the system of
“
T a m b u ra z i o n e was p r actised in
Florence ) by an enemy who w ished t o disqualify him for
”
the publi c offi ce of the D odici Bu onuomini The Republic .
,

2
ho w ever accepted his defence and elected h i m to offi ce
, .

T h ere is no d o cumentary evide n ce o f the date o f death of his

father Cione but the r e is p r oof that Bartolo married Fi ore
,

’
after her first husband s death Ho w ever this may be .
,

Bartolo seems to have been the only father that L orenzo

k new and g r eat c on fidence and affection existed bet w een
,

them Bartolo w as a clever goldsmith and from him the

.
,

boy learned the fir s t principles o f d esign Lorenzo did not .

,

how ever confine himself to gold w orki n g but delighted in

,
-

modelling copies of a n tique medals a nd also in painting , ,

which G her ardo Starnino taught him He m ade such good .

1
G ay e. Ca rt ggi
e o i n ed iti ,
’
v ol .i p . . 148 15 5
-
.

2 Mil an esi , op . ci t . v ol. ii p

. . 2 18 n ote .
 B ERTI
'

LO RE N z o G HI . 55

p rogress in this art that w hen i n 1400 he had to fly from,

the plague in Florence he w as fortunate enough to obtain

,

empl oym ent at Rimini to f r esco some rooms in the palace

of C arlo M alatesta L ord of P cs ar o , .

He re is his ow n acco unt of this part of his life tak en fr om ,

a manusc r ipt in the M agl i ab ecch i an L ibra r y w hich after his ,

son Vitt or i o s death passed into the hands of C osimo Ba r toli :

’
1

“
In my youth anno ch ri sti 1400 moved b oth by the
, ,

c orr upted air of Florence an d the bad state of the count ry ,

I fl ed w ith a w orthy painter w h o had been sent for by Sign or

M alate sta of P esaro and he gave us a r oom to paint w h ic h
, ,

w e did w ith g r eat di ligence M y s ou l ( l a ni m a m i a ) w as at

.

th is time much turned t ow a r ds pain ting pa rtly f rom the ,

hope of the works in w hich Si g M alatesta promised to .

empl oy us ; and pa rtly because my companion w as al w ays

sh o w i n g me the honour an d utility w hich w ould accrue to us .

Nevertheless at this m oment w h en my frie n ds w rote to me

, ,

that the g overn ors of the Baptistery w ere sending for

m asters w h ose skill in bro n ze w orki n g they w ished to p r ove ,

and th at from all Italian la n ds m a n y nzaes tr i we r e coming

to place themselves in t h is st r ife of talent I could n o l onger
forb e a r an d asked leave of Si g M alatesta wh o let me depart
, .
,

[ to
The c ompetition was conducted in th e follo w ing man ner .

Four tables of b r ass we r e given to eac h competitor an d

”
,

every on e w as requi red to make a relief of the Sacrifice of

Is aac on a piece of metal the size and shape of the d oo r
,
’

pa n els The time of one year w as giv en for preparing t h e

.

m ode l s an d the artis t whose m od e l w as j udged th e best

,

w as to have the commissi on G h ibe r ti himsel f gives th e .

list of his rivals Filippo Bru n ellesc o Sim on e da Colle

,

1
Co de x 3 3 ,
l
c ass x v ii . B ibli t
o eca M agl i ab ecch i ana .
56 E ARL Y ITAL I AN SCUL P T O R S .

r
F ancesco di Val d O m b ri n o Niccolo d Ar ezzo
’
J ac opo
’

della Querc i a da Siena ; and Niccolo Lamberti He g oes .

“
on to say with commendable brevity and emphasis : The
palm of v ictory was conceded to m e by all the j udges and by
th ose who c ompeted with me Univ e rsally the glory was . .

” 2
given to me without any exception .

The only on e w hich approached in me rit to G h i b er ti s was ’

that of B r unellesco and these t w o may n o w be se e n in

,

j uxtapositi on in the room of bronzes in th e Bargell o w here ,

all j udges must instinctively ratify the decision of the

patrons Brunellesco has taken the r eluct ant obedience of
.

A braham as a savage zeal ; he is fiercely murdering his

s o n with such fury that the a n gel seems to use absolute f o rce

to draw a way his hand Supreme indi ff erence to the act .

characterises the other fig u r es The lamb scratches itse l f a .

,

man pulls a thorn ou t of his own fee t another i s putting on ,

his stock ings and the ass eats g rass eagerly In G h i b er ti s

,
.
’

model the trustin g faith of the boy a n d the reluctance of

the loving father are appa re n t in their faces The lamb .

se ems r ead y for the sacrifice the tw o men waiting w ith the
l ,

ass are di gnified fig ures who gaze upwar ds Wi t h great p ity ,

a n d awe in their eyes .

—
Bartolo G h i b er ti s foster father — assisted him greatly in
’
-

perfecting his desi gn by j udicious criticisms and by constantl y ,

urging h i m to b r ing hi s model to higher perfection befo re

1 Som e auth o r s ha th at N i ccol o of Arezz o an d N i ccol o
v tri d t p r v
e e o o e

L am b erti were on e and th e s am e b u t bes i d es th e fa ct th at G h i b erti

h i m sel f m en ti on s t h em as t wo Si g M i l an es i h as l a t el y fou n d d i rect
,

p r oof of t h e ex is ten ce of th e two a r i s ts A n n ot V as ari v ol ii p

, .

‘ ’
. .
, . . .

2 25 .

2 Th e MS . G h i be
by rti fr
i ch th ese ex tracts are t ak en i s th e
om wh
o r igi n al
,

on t h e e x i s te n ce o f w h i ch H
MS ( Co d e x 3 3 ) a e n h as foun d ed
g
.

h i s r om an ti c forgery t h e Ch r o n i cl e of G h i b erti
, .
’
 EA R LY ITA L I AN SC UL P T O R S .

casting it H e was associated w ith h i s stepson in the com

.

m ission for maki n g the doors of the Baptistery which w as ,

“
given on Nov 2 3 1403 A L orenzo di Bartolo e a
.
, .
,

Bartolo di M ichele suo padre orafe L or en z o was bound to .

design the stories and labour with his o wn hand at the

,
”
nudes the draperies an d al l the artistic par ts ; for th e
, ,

ordinary labour he might avail h imself of the help of his

foster fath e r and any other masters he chose Th r ee com
-
.

p ar tm en ts were to be completed each year The M erchants .

’

G uild paid the wages and all expen s es L orenzo himself .

was prohibited from accepting any other commissions and ,

was on all wo r king days to give his w hole time to the gates .

The days on which he did n ot work w ere e n t e red in a boo k .

His payme n t was at the rate of 2 00 flor i n s a year .

The studio in which the doors w ere cast w as a large place

1
called the Aj a or Threshing fl oor near the hospital of S -

, .

M aria Nuova Here G hibert i made a la rge furnace to mel t

.

his metal i f the fi rst cast did n ot com e w ell an other mould
w as made and the c ompartment r e c ast ;
,
lbs of -
.

b r onze w e r e used an d the cost of the do ors amounted to

,

ducats .

H is assistants were Ba n dino d i Stefano ; Fr ancesco Brus

caccio C ola di L i el l o da Roma ; Francesco da Verona ;
G iuliano da P oggibonsi A ntonio di D omenico ; Benoz z o
G oz zol i w h o worked three years he r e ; G h i b er ti s stepfather
’

Bart olo Niccolo di Lorenzo D on atello and others The boys , .

employed w ere P aolo U ccello J ae e po di Bartolommeo and , ,

2
h i s ow n son Vittorio .

1 Th e Aj a b ecam e fam ous i n arti sti c an n al s i n a fter y ears as th e

m eeti ng p l a ce o f t h e cl u b s of t h e T r owel &c an d as th e s eat of t h e
,

A cad e m y of St L u k e
.
, ,

. .

2
La p o r ta d el B attis te r i o d a Ferd i nan d o G regor i o e T o m m aso
‘

Patch
’
. 1 773 .
 L ORE Nz o G HI B ERTI . 59

The d ors took twenty one years to mak e and were placed
o ~

on A pril 19 142 4 o n the side of the Baptiste r y to w ards the

, ,

D u omo A n drea P i san o s gates being rem o v ed to the side

’

facing the Bi gal l o to m ak e room for them They w ere richly .

gilt and burn ishe d A trio of influential Flo r entines was

.

O FFE R ING or r m; WISE ME N . Br on z e-

r li
e e f by
, G e rm a n .

O n the N or th D oor f
o th e B ap ti ster y, Fl or enc e .

deputed to superi ntend the collocati on —P alla Strozzi Matteo ,

Villani and N i ceol o di L uca di Fee In these gates a g reat

, .
60 E AR LY ITA L I AN SC UL PT O R S .

those of Andrea ; but on e feels instinctivel y that the ar t

w h ich h as u ided and formed G h i b er ti s st l e h as been i c
’
G

t or i al rather than sculpturesque The spirit which Giotto .

a r oused and the M em m i and Lippi had amplified is there ;

, ,

it

the groi rp i n g and design tells a tale as plainly as a cro w ded

fresco can do The t w enty ei ght panels ar e all of the same
.
-

ge ometrical form as — the trial M o n es a l oz en e and h alf circles ,

c

W
r
W
” T Q

r e e ctm
p j g from each Si de T w enty o f these are
. scenes f om

the li fe of Christ and eight are fil led by four evangelists and

,

four doctors of the C hu r ch the corners bein g occupied b y ,

heads of re b ets and sib Is and the w o c

with a rich leaf y b orde r thus connecting nature with its,

auth or . The A n n u nci a ti on i s a charming com os i ti on ,

the Vir in d i spl ayi n a m ost natural mixtur e 0 f

o cr d
ca 0 CTIIBSS .
n

The Ep ip h a ny is very spirited , the Fi ndi ng of C hr i s t i n

th e Temp l e is also very suggestive , the astonishment of the
doctors and the j oy of the pa rents be i ng admi rab l y expressed .

In the Temp ta ti on he has ma n aged to gi ve the awe on the

,

face of the Devil w hen he rec og n izes the D ivinity of Ch r ist

in a most telling m anner O n the other side of the door the
.

R a i s i ng of L a za r us is the m o st fo r cible of all the subjects and ,

the E n tr y i n to J er us a l em the m ost elaborate The Tr a ns .

fi gur a ti on seems i n comp osition a prototype of Raphael s

’

wonderful picture .

The clause in the agreement that he should accept n o

o ther c ommissions du r i n g the time does not se e m t o ha v e

been observed for on N ov 10 1404 he was called in c ou n cil

, .
, ,

to decide on the best f or m for the buttresses of the D u o mo ,

a n d drew s o me designs f or them for w hich he w as paid on ,

62 EAR LY ITA L IAN SC UL P T O R S .

some reliefs These w ere not finished t i ll 142 7 because th e

'

.
,

plague intervened and all h i s workmen ran away while he ,

' ‘

went to Venice In a letter to l urin i the golds m ith he

.

explains this saying ,

Kno w then de ar f r iend that at the , ,

time I h ve p r om ised these thi n gs to Ser Bartolommeo they

a

shal l be ready They w o uld have been fini shed long ago had
.

it n ot been for the ing r atitude of my assistants f r om whom I ,

have s uffered many annoyances but I a m out of their ha n ds

n ow and thank G od for my l i b erty f or I am n e w master of
, ,

”
m y work shop and w ill remain s o 1 The sub j ects of these .

reliefs are the B ap ti s m of ou r Lor d and S J oh n befor e .

Her od Th e drawing and comp osition are pic torial and

.

g r aceful the modelling pe r fect Donatello a n d J ae e po dell a

, .

Quercia were at a later time also empl oyed on this font .

G hiberti w as by this ti m e m arried to M arsilia dau ghter of ,

Bartolommeo di L u ca a w orthy c omb maker and w as develop

,
-

ing a strong taste for col lecting anti ques so he was n ot l ikely ,

to refuse any l ucrative offer .

In 1417 he designed a pair of silver candelab r a for G iovanni

G u ar i en ti the goldsmith to make for the ora tory of O r San ,

M ichele and next year w e find him finishing a desig n for the
,

long unfinished cup ola of the D uomo for which he was pai d ,

5 00 lire so that his talents were versat i le

, N ext the P ope .
~
,

M artin V called upon him o n M ay 2 0 1419 to design the

.
, ,

stair cas e of h i s pal ace in S M ari a Novella H is Holiness w as

. .

staying in Florence that year and hav i ng seen a beautiful ,

gold mounti ng in which G hiberti had set as a seal a rare

-

, , ,

i ntagl io for G iovanni de M edici he gave hi m a commission

’

, ,

” 2
in 1419 to make a mitre and a but ton for hi s P i vi a l e
, .
'

1
Kuns t un d Kii n s tl er , G h ibe
p 40 41 rt i ,
’
.
, .

2
Pi vi al e a la rg e em b ro i d ere d eccl es i as ti cal v estm en t fas tened i n fr on t
,

w ith a ri ch b roo ch or b ut ton .

 L O R ENZ O G HI ERTI B . 63

The first was covered with gold leaves and little raised figur es ,

th e second w ith fi gures in relief and rich gems In this same .

year Ghi berti rose to greater public honour and w as elected ,

.

j oint di rector of the w orks of the Du omo with B r unell esco

and Battista d An ton i o How the partners disagreed an d
’
.
,

h ow G h ib erti master as he w as of bron ze casti n g quailed

, , ,

an d found himself unequal to th e task of raisi n g that gigantic

'

dome ; an d h ow the b rave Fi lippo Brunellesc o havi n g mag ,

n an i m ou s l y given G hiberti the precedence in the c o mpetition

for the b r onz e gates sho w ed himself b oth firm an d mast erful
,

as re gard ed the cup ola w hich he rea r ed fro m hi s own plans ,

,

a n d against the belief of hi s fell o w —

citizens — is too well know n ,

t o need repetiti on h e r e P erki n s in his Tuscan Sculpto r s 1 ’

.
, ,

is ve r y severe on G h iberti for his share i n this quar r el saying ,

that h i s h eart was bad an d his disp osition mer cenary ,

“ ”

’
that he Spied out Brun ellesc o s m odels an d gave such
p r o ofs of his i gnorance w h en attempti n g to ca rr y ou t a portion
of the w or k by himsel f that he w as obli ged to resign
”
.

Now t h ere are tw o sides to every question an d it wi ll be ,

only fair to look at thi s f r om L ore n z o s p oint of vie w He ’

.

h a d been e lec ted by the h eads of the w or ks of the Du omo

as C apo M aestr o c on join tly with Brunellesco an d Battista
’
d An ton i o . Th e three partners then should have w orked
, ,

c on j oin tly and have been so c onversant with the model to

,

be adopted that in the absence of on e the others c ould

,

superin tend the work .

But h ow did Brunell esco behave ? He made secret models ,

w hich he would sh ow to n o on e least of all to his coll ea gu es

, ;

w h o were so placed at a di sadvantage th at when he feign ed

ill ness they never hav i ng seen his plans could not carry on
, , ,

a work which he had begun on a system quite new to them .

1
Pe rki ns,
‘
Tu scan Scul p tors ,
’
vol . L ch . . v .
p l 13 5 .
64 EAR LY ITAL I AN SC UL PT O R S .

The very b est architect might show his ignorance in su ch a

ca s e and decline to meddl e in a design w hich had been kept
,

e n tirely hidden from h i m T h i n gs being in this sta te

.
,

B r unell e sco obstinately refusing to let his co partners b e co -

j
a d u tor s ,
what c ould they d o but resign 2 — w hich w as

w hat he w as aiming at the wh ole time being determined ,

to have the enti r e credit A gain as to G h i b er ti s claimi n g

'

.
,

the salary due to him on his resi gnati on w hich P e r ki n s con ,

siders so mercenary we find that if he had n ot been success

,

ful in fol l o w ing ou t the h idden pl ans of his colleague he had ,

certainly done some part to w ards ea r ning his three fi or i n s

a month
-

,
having furnished design s for the glass w in dows ,

h elped in the chain w o r k of the cup ola and the vane of the
-

lante r n d esigned the n ew ch oir an d o rde red the alta r s for

, ,

the t r ibu nes in 143 5 These las t were in the years w hen he
.

had resig n ed the w ork of the cupola but still continued in ,

o ffice f or o ther restorations H is stipe n d co n ti n ued to the

.

end three fl ori n s a mo n th w hi le Filippo B r u n elleschi w as

-

d r a w ing eight and a half besides a pension of 100 fi ori n s

- - -

a-
year for li fe after his wo r k was fi n i s h e d 1
.

G h ib er ti s part of the di rection of the work s too k the

’

artistic form of giving the desi gns for the circular windows
of painted glass beneath the d o me and t w o in the fa c ade , .

A mong hi s dra w i n gs for these the two best are an Assu mp

ti on of th e Vi r gi n an d the A scens i on of Ch r i s t Do n at e llo .

furn ish ed a desi gnfor on e of the w i n d ows w h i ch we r e executed ,

in Ven e tian glass by Francesco Li vi da Gambassi wh o m the ,

Op er a had sent for f r om Lubec k at their ow n expense

”
.

’
It is possible that G h i b er ti s visit to Venice in the autumn of
142 4 may have l ed him to consider the utility of Venetian
glass as a medi um of ar t .

1 Mil anesi, op . ci t. vol . 11 . p . 3 58 t

n o e.
 CH AP TE R III .

THE BAP TI T
S E RY D O ORS .

HE year 142 5 mar ked the commencement of G h i b er ti s

’

Ba p
W
tiste r y The c ommissi on w as gi v en on Jan 2 n d by
.
1 .
m

th e co n suls of the Gu il d of M e r chan ts Th e a r tist w as .

”

n ot l eft fr e e to choose his sub j ects w hich L e o n a r do B r u n i

,

d A rezz o th en chanc ellor of the R epublic selected fo r him

’
.
, ,

In submitti n g to the Op er a the list o f sub j ects ch os en ,

B ru n i fi nish es a l on g lette r thus : It is necessary that he

“

w h o has to d e si gn th em should be w ell i n st r ucted i n eve r y

sto r y so th at h e may d isp ose th e c h aracte r s and sc en es to the
,

b est e ffect an d th at h e sh ould ha ve an educat ed taste that

, ,

he may r ende r th em m or e fitl y I have n o d oubt that

.

th e w or k as I h ave designed it w ill succ e ed w ell ; but I

, ,

sh ould like to be near th e ar tist th at I migh t i n terpret to ,

”
him the man y mea n i n gs of the sce n es .

L eon ar do s n ame is n ot m enti oned again i n the hist or y o f

’

th e gates so it is not kn o w n wh eth er Ghiberti w as r eally

,

fette r ed by havin g to use the d esig n s an d inter p r et th e m

’
th rou gh anoth e r m an s mi n d ; but th e ga tes which t h e ,

1
A cas t of th ese m ay b e seen i n t
th e Sou h Ken s i ngton M us eum .

E 1 s
. . . F
66 EA R LY IT AL I AN SC U P O L T RS .

g reatest sculptor pronounced worthy to be the gates of “

P aradis e stand yet as G h i b e r ti s m aste r pi ec e and the fi nes t

” ’
-

, ,

pictorial work ever produced i n b ronze He says himself in .

his com m entary that h e w orked w ith the utmost diligence

,
“ ”
and patience studyi n g Nature and investigating her
, ,

methods of w ork and gi ng M

”
M ,M —
1
and perspective .

So tho r ough w as his study that he has i n some panels

i nt r oduced n o t only a hundred fi ur es ht three rr &

or four kindred sub jects into o n e compositi on th aL the ,

w h o le st o r y and its meanings are told without the l

c on fusi on t i s a marvel of aerial an d lineal p ers pectiye
.
,

a
W M M M S

nu
“W
diminution relief the dista n t fi m r es bei n scarce]
of g
a
raised
,

f rom the Tou n d z the nea rest in extrem e high relief

&
a
.

Take the Cr ea ti o n of A d a m w hich con tai n s the story of ,

his life most exquisit ely told O n the left the A lmighty .
, ,

with a row of attenda n t angels is dra w ing the newly—formed ,

man from the e arth ; this the principal sub j ect is i n very , ,

high relief In the cent r e E ve arises from the sleeping form

.
,

o f her sp ouse a pe r fect woma n surrounded and caressed by ,

a n gels In the back g r ound the Temptation is bein g yielded

.

to beneath a group of trees in the garden O n the right is .

the E xpulsion while afar o ff in the centre sky are the hosts
,

o f heaven fa i ntly indicated in delicately chise l led li nes of

,
-

fl o w i n g d ra pery and celestial forms .

Then h ow spiritedl y the Si ege of J er i ch o is given IVh a t

life in the Israelitish army marchi ng rou n d the wal l s with
1
MS . Co mm en ta ry 11 Ghi b r ti
e ,
’
Magl i ab ecch i an Li b rary , Clas s x v ii
C o de x 3 3 .
 L O R EN Z O G HI B E RTI . 67

no w eapons but those brazen trumpe ts in their hands Wh at

crow ds of arm ed foe s b r istle round th e inner w alls l — and h ow
the triumphant ar my rushes V ictori ously in a t the breach so
miraculou s ly made & He has impres sed on the c ompositio n
”
its i n ner meani n g the irre sistible power of G od .

The whole design of the gates is as follow s

1 C reati on of Ad am 2 A dam an d E v e an d ch il dr en
C rea ti on o f E ve Th e two sacri fi ces
. . . .

D ea th o f A bel
. .

T e m p ta ti on
E xp u l s i on C urse of Cai n
. .

. .

3 N oah &c com e out of th e ar k 4 Abram recei ves th ree angels

N oah s s acri fice Sa c ri fi ce of l saac
. . .
.
, .

Serv an ts i n t h e d i s tan ce
. .

l n eb r i ati o n . .

5 I s aa c an d h i s s ons 6 J ose ph s old by h i s b reth re n

Ph a raoh s d ream
. . . .

E a u h u n tin g
’
s

Th e b l ess in g of Je cob Jose ph s b reth r en i n Egyp t

. .

’
. .

7 M o s es o n M ou n t Si n ai 8 Jos h u a m ar ch i n g r oun d J eri cho

J os h u a an d p eopl e b el ow Fal l of J eri ch o
. . . .

. .

9 Da v i d ki ll in g Go l ia th 10 Q u e en of Sh eb a
Ph i l i s ti n es defea ted So l o m o n wi th a la rge com
. . . .

D av i d s t n um pb an t en t ry
.

an y
’ '

p . .

Th ese beautiful gates occupied Lo re n zo nearly th irty years ,

Be sides anels there were tw d e cornic e s

n u mber of art i sts he lp ed him m any bein g the same assistants ,

as in the firs t gate Hi s son Vittorio did the cornices and

.

adornmen ts The do ors n ot being ready by 145 0 a n ew

.
,

c ompact was made that th ey w ere to be finished i n t w e n ty

mon ths but it is n ot till April 2 145 2 that Vittori o began , ,

to gild th em an d they w ere at l ast erected on J 1111 0 l 6th of

th at year on the side to wards the Duomo G h i b erti s fi r s t
, ,
’

d oors being remo ved to the n orth side to m ake room for
them .

During these tw enty nine years L oren zo was often employed -

on other work s principally monumen ts , Two of these are .

F 2
 EA R LY ITA L I AN SC UL P T O R S .

i n Santa Croce , that of Ludovico degli Ob i zz i captai n of the ,

Florentine arm y who fell i n the engagement against the

,

papal troops of M artin V i n 142 4 and that of the G e n .

f al on i er e Bartolommeo Valori For the church of Sta M ar ia .

Novel la he made a bronze sarcophagus with the recumbent

fi gure on it of Fra L eonardo di Stagi o D ati the general of ,

the Dominican O rder but the tomb is no longer i n existence .

A more important work w as the tomb of S Z an ob i u s bishop .

,

an d patron saint of Florence w h o li ved i n 417 The Op er a ,

.

of the D uomo gave G hiberti the com mi ssion on M arch 18 ,

143 2 obliging h i m to finish it i n ten months but in 1 43 9

,

he is called on to f ur ther embelli sh the sarcophagus by

m ak ing t h ree reliefs of scenes and miracles from the lif e
of S Z an ob i us
. The C hancel lor M esser L eonardo Bruni
.
,

d Ar ezz o al so chose the sub j ects for these and w rote the
’
, ,

inscription whi ch was enclosed within a garland sus tained

,

by si x angels The tomb was completed in

.

A nother of G h i b er ti s work s is the reliquary of Saints

’

P r otu s Hyacinth and N em esi u s which C osimo and L orenzo

, , ,

de M edici ordered i n 142 8 for the monastery of the A ngeli

’
.

Thi s i s n ow in the room of bronzes in the Bargello and ,

consis ts of a metal chest adorn ed wi th a h as relief of t wo -

angels holding a garland of olive leav es in w hi ch is the -

i nscription .

In his private life Ghiberti was a m an of taste Hi s house .

i n the Borgo All egri ( a street noted i n the annals of art

from C imabue s days) w as fu l l of exquisi te and ra re anti que
’

t r easures He had so m e beautiful Gree k vases and frag

.
,

m ents of Roman bronze ; a Satyr two or three fi n e statues ,

1
Mi l an es i ,
‘
An n ot . V asa ri ,
’
v ol . ii p . . 23 5 . G aye, ‘
Ca rt g i
e g o

i ned ito,
’
v ol . i p
. . 5 43 t
n o e.
D ONATE LL O .
 C H AP TE R IV .

DO N AT E LL O .

hands sculptu r e w a s fast taki n g a ch aracter

G h ib er ti
’
s

n ot st r ictly its o w n b u t bel o n gi n g m o r e t o the pict o r ial

,

a r t His succ e sso r an d r ival D o n ate ll o by h i s j ust a pp r e ci a

.
, ,

ti on o f th e aims an d limits o f th e plastic a r t an d by a ste r n ,

realism b r ough t it back w ith i n t h e t r u e b ou n d s o f sculptu r e

, ,

a n d ga v e it n e w impetus layi n g t h e f ou n dati o n o f t h at sc h oo l

,

o f e a r n e st sev e r e a r t w h ic h c ulmi n ated i n the i n t e n se w o rks

, ,

o f M ic h ela n g e l o i l T e rr i b ile
”
.

It is di fficult to s ay f r o m w h o m Do n atello h ad his a rtistic

taste I t w as n ot h e r edita ry h i s fath e r be i n g a w ool c ombe r
.
,
-

i n the pa ris h of S P ier G a ttol i n i w h o se tu rbul ent p olitical

.
,

o pi n i on s h ad b ee n th e cau s e o f h is e x ile to P isa a n d the n ce ,

t o L ucca He r e tu r n ed to Fl o r e n c e h ow e ve r in 13 8 0 an d
.
, , ,

as b o r n W h e n quite a c h ild
1 w
i n 13 86 his son D ato n o .

D on atell o w as tak e n i n to th e h ous e o f th e n obl e f amily o f

the M a r te lli w h o had al ways b e en l o ve rs an d pat r on s o f a r t
, .

P r obably his su r r o u n di n gs he r e t r ai n ed his tast e an d d ecid ed

‘

his be n e fact ors on th e bias w hich t h ey s h ould give to his

1
Do n ate di Bett e B r di
a w as h is r l
ea n am e, b ut h e h as l way s b een
a

k n own as Do n a t e ll o.
 E AR LY ITAL IA N SC UL P T O R S
.

education Some say he w as a pupil o f Bicci di L orenzo

.
,

othe r s that he studied under G h i b erti s father ; but n othi n g ’

is certain except that be a sisted G hiberti h ims elf in casti n g

s

the bronze gat e s a n d that he for med a cl ose f r iendship w ith

,

Bru nellesc o w hich had perhaps more to d o in forming the

,

futu r e career of both tha n an y other influence .

There w as some di ff erence of age between them ; Brune l lesco

w as a man o f t w enty three while D on a te w a s a mere i m p ul
-

s ive b oy O f fou r tee n very p r oud o f his first wo rk a crucifi x in

, ,

B ut alas & w h e n he expected h i s f r i en d s praise he

’
w o od .
,

only go t his d e r ision and co n temptu ous Wh y you h a v e ,

crucified a contadi n o ? Do n ato s flush of ange r and fie r y

” ’

challenge to his f r iend to mak e a b etter cruci fix himsel f

“
,

was b oylike and natu ral O n a lat e r d ay w h en B r u n el

.
,

lesc o w ith the sup e r i o r kn ow ledge o f l on g e r artistic training

, ,

had completed his crucifix he b r ought Do n atello i n to his ,

studio w ith his ha n ds f ull o f thei r p urchases in the m arket

,

the boy as eager i n admi ration as in i n dig n ati on l e t

, ,

al l h i s eggs an d ch e ese fall as he u plifted his ha n ds i n ,

ecstasy a n d with i n g en u ous humility exclaimed To thee it

, ,

is giv e n to sculpture a C h r ist ; I ca n only m ake peasa n ts ”

.

N o t the boy but the true a r tist here sp oke rec og n isi n g the
, ,

tr u th that art was g r eate r than himself .

Fr om this time he se e ms to have set up his ideal and ,

trained himself s teadily to attain it .

In 1 403 B r u n elle s c o being still sore from his defeat by

,

Ghiberti in the comp etit i on fo r the Baptistery door s proposed

to his youthful compa n i o n a pilgrim age to R o m
,

e The t wo set .

o ff and this j ourney dete r mi n ed the aims of their respective

,

liv e s B r un el l esco r em e m b e ri n g the ro ofless D uo m o of Fl orence

.
,

fo r a c e ntu r y unc o mpl e te d set himself to study beneath the

,

d ome o f the P anth e on and thence evolved the plans which

,
SA IN T CE C I IA
L . A BA s -
R E LIE E B Y DO N A IE L LO
' ’

In th e p ossess i on of Lor d E tcho .

 DO N AT E LL O . 73

have made h i m famous for ever H e scarcely eat or slept .

but passed his time i n t h e gre at r uins of ancie n t R ome ,

lea r n i n g as al l must do f rom the w isdo m of our fo r e fath ers

, ,
.

D onatell o n o t troubli n g himself ab o ut arch e s and cup olas

, ,

wande red ab out w ith his pencil o r charcoal making d r a wings ,

of every b i t of ancient art he c ould fi n d He unearth ed .

c o r n ices h as re l ie fs and other p recious f ragments till the t wo

,
-

, ,

youths we r e looked on as treasure seekers Some say there -

.

is fo undation in fact for this r umour for they abs olute ly ,

fo und a vase o f c o ins but the t reasures w hich they really

,

g ain e d w e r e k n o w l e dge and traini n g w hich l ed them both ,

to the high est fame .

In 1 405 D onatell o retu rned to Fl orence and entered ,

G h ib er ti s cr ow ded studi o o n th e oj a of S M aria N uo va

’
.
.
,

He did s ome ind epe n de n t w orks suc h as the A nn u nci a ti on i n

,

th e C avalca n ti chap e l in S C r oc e a r eli e f i n sandsto n e w hich

.
,

sh ows the i n fluence of his Roman stud ies c ombined w ith th e ,

natu ralistic se n tim en t which is in all his w orks Th e next .

seve n or eight y ears a r e ma r ked by se v e ral la rge statues ,

w h ich have bec ome h o useh old w o r ds in Fl o r e n ce The .

Op er a o f the Du om o gave h i m a c ommissi on Feb 2 0 1407 ,

.
, ,

to mak e a figu r e o f D a vi d for th e Du omo This is on .

the t h i r d row of t h e C ampanile and is familiarly k n o w n ,

”
as i l Z ucc one ( the bald head ) It is sai d that while in .

th e stud i o the fi gure w as j udged to be c oarse and rough but ,

Donate ll o refused to imp ro ve it tru sti n g to its goo d e ff e ct

,

w hen placed in its fa r off niche -

A n d i n fact w hen it was
.

e rected a l l judge s ag re ed as to i ts pe r fecti on On e of .

D onato s favou r i te asse v e rati on s w as A lla fe ch i o p orto al

’ ’
’
,
”
m i o Z ucc one 1 In 1 407 he made a statue of an ol d m an t o
.

1
He was p ai d 3 7 gol d fl ori n s for th i s on J un e 13 1412 T h ere i s
great d i v ers i ty of op i n i on as to wh i ch of Do nato s s ta tues th e t i t l e of
.
, ,
'
 EA R LY IT AL I AN SCUL P T O R S .

p l ace be t w een t w o colu m ns o n the side o f the D uomo n ear

the Via dei Servi ; this w as follo w ed by a D a n iel an d a
J os h u a .For the J osh ua he was paid 12 8 gold flo r i n s on
A ugust 1 2 141 2 , .

The Fou r a ngel i s ts on the fa c ad e w ere commissions

gi ven to him co nj o i n tly w ith N i ccol o L amberti a n d Nan n i
, ,

di Dan ce in 1408 He c ompleted the S J ohn E va n g elist

,
. .
,

f or w hich he was paid 16 0 g old fi or i n s on O ct 9 1415 In ,

.
, .

the same m o n th h e h ad a further o rder f o r tw o statues fo r

the C ampanile i n w hich a certain G i o va n n i di Ba r to l o
,

assisted him Th e subj e c ts w e r e A br a h a m wi th Is a a c a t h i s

.
,

feet w hich is ove r the d oo r o f the Campa n ile and a P r op h et

, , ,

i n o n e o f t h e nic h es o n th e thi r d tier In company w ith .

Filippo Brunellesco he m ade a statue of marble co vered

w ith gilded lead to adorn o n e of the sp r on i or brackets o n
, ,

the fa c ade o f the D u om o T h is w as fi n i s hed A ug 2 7 1416

. .
,
.

A t this time there w as g reat emulati o n a m ong the G uilds

o f Fl o r e n ce as pat ro n s o f A r t E ach compa n y had u n de r .

’
taken to fill w ith a statue a n iche o n the outside o f O r cagua s
church o f Or San M i chele T h ree of thes e w ere gi v e n to .

G h iberti as w e have sh o w n It w as n o w D on atel l o s tu r n

,
.
’

to sha r e the pat r o na ge ; and his fi n est statue the St G eor ge 1 ’

.
, ,

w as d one fo r the Guild o f A r moure r s an d placed on the ,

s outh side in 1 416 .

This w as D on ate l l o s cap o d op er a In it h e has attained

’ ’
.

Z uccon c w as gi en v as a i s ay s V r it was a li k en es s of G io v a n ni di
v vid
.

Ba rd u cci C h e i i ch i u i ; M il a nes i gi es th e n am e to t h e t
s at u e o f Da
l
o n th e C a m p a n i e , wh i ch i s s i gn e d by D on ate l o l Aga in th e a n e cd o t e

i sa o a o f t h e Con s ul s t o work wh i ch l ook e d coar s e o n

pp r v l
.

of th e d
n ear i n s p e c ti o n i s gen er a ll y t l d o f t h e S M ark at t h e Ch u r ch o f O r
o

Sa n M i ch el e b u t Ci cogn ara v ol 1 ch a p i Del l a Scult u ra ass e rts

, .

, ,

t h a t i t app l i e s t o t h e Da v i d w h i ch r ea ll y h ad to b e p l aced h igh

. .
, . .

.
,

1
A as t i s i n t h e Sou th Ken s i ngt on M us e um
c .
76 E AR LY IT AL I AN SC UL P T O R S .

such nobility o f fo r m combined with youth s u ch high courage

and yet simplicity ; such fine proportio n s and richness o f
decoration that the youthful warrior has touched al l hearts
, ,

and sta n ds for ages a s the type of the C hristian militant .

f i 1
B e ech i who lived in 15 8 3 published a book in praise
,
o t ,
.

In the same year Do n ate llo sculptured his m arble D a vi d ,

for the P alazzo della Sig n oria It w as placed in the Sala .

dell O riuolo o n J une 2

’ ”
,
whe n ce it w as removed lately
,

to th e M useo Nazionale in the Bargello where is als o his ,

bron z e D a vi d a later but much i nferior work In this

,
.

’
latter the young hero i s a pu n y figure in a shepherd s hat
an d k ingly g r eaves the face is small without being ch ildish ;
an d arms entirely w ith o ut muscle in short a complete con ,

t r ast to M ichelangelo s later conception the Dav id of th e

’
,

P alazzo Vecchio w hich seems to express the in d omitable

,
’
po w er of youth w h i le D onato s only shows the m iracul ous
,

power o f w eak n ess .

D uring the next fe w years he continued to w ork for the

D uom o and C ampanile and executed also some private com ,

missions such as a marble lion ( 142 1) for the head o f the stair
,

case i n the Po pe s house i n S M aria Novella Florence an d

’
.
, ,
’
s ome prophets heads in a sculpture of the Cor ona ti on of th e
Vi rgi n ( 142 2 ) for a door of the D uomo by his frie n d Nann i di
Ba n co Then came a more important underta k ing the tomb
.
,

i n the Baptistery of Florence ( 142 6) of P ope J ohn XXIII .

,

w h o had been deposed by the C ouncil of C onstance .

’
The late P ope s h eirs had the tomb m ade and placed on i t ,

the inscripti on J oannes Quondam P apa XXIII & c whi ch

, . .
,

gave great umbrage to his successor in the P apal chair Th e .

tomb i s a serious and noble design executed partly in m arble , ,

1
E ccell en za d ell a Statu a d i Don atel l o ’
Fi r enz e, 15 8 3
rt ggi
. .

3
G ay e, i p
’
Ca e o, v ol . . . 1 17, 11 9
.
78 E AR LY IT AL I AN SC UL P T O R S .

partly i n bronze The recumbent statue i n bronze gil t lies

.
, ,

o n a v e r y high sarcophagus three marble statues — Faith , ,

H ope an d C harity — standing before it O f these Faith i s

,
.

inferior to the others but it is said to have bee n th e w ork

,

of his assistant M i chelozzo ; that o f H o pe is especially

beautiful the attribute expressed only in the l o vely pleadi n g
,

countenance For this w or k he was pai d 1000 fl or i ns in

.

g o ld .

M ichelozzo he l ped Donatello also i n the tomb o f Cardinal

Ri n ald o B ran cacci placed in the church o f S Angelo in N il o
,
.

at Naples in 142 7 This is a sarcophagus with a beauti ful

.

h as re l ief of the M ad onna and angels

-
M ichel ozzo sc ulptured .

the t h ree caryatides w hich supp ort it For this monument .

C o simo d e M edici w h o w as the C a r dinal s execut or paid

’ ’

, ,

8 5 0 gold fl o ri n s the carr iage from P isa to N aples being at

,

t h e a r tist s expense
’
.

Havi n g had a cycle of statue mak in g Do n atello was n ow -

i n a cycle of tomb buildi n g In 142 8 C osi m o and L orenz o

-
.

de M edici empl oyed h i m to e r ect a sepulchral monument for

’

th eir father an d m other ( G i o va n n i and P iccarda ) in the

sac r isty o f San L ore n zo and Bart ol ommeo A r agazz i secreta r y
, ,

t o P ope M a r tin V agreed to pay h i m .

,
scudi for a
tomb for himself to be er e cted i n the church at M onte
,

pulciano This is said by L eona r do A r e tin o in a letter to

.
,

his f r ie n d P oggi o to have been a m asterpiece ; but it is

,

n o w taken to pieces and dispersed about the church Two .

angels are placed on the high altar of w hich a part of the ,

f r ie z e forms the gr a d i n o ; a figu r e o f the E ternal Fath e r

“ ”

i s o n a pilaster and t wo fine reliefs are let int o the other

,

pilasters the r e cumb ent figure of A r agaz z i bei n g in the w all

,

near the p r i n cipal do or M ichelozzo assisted in this monu .

me n t if i n deed the commission was not given to him as Si g

, , .
80 EA R LY ITAL IA N SC UL P T O R S .

childhood G roups o f dancing laughing winged cherubs

.
, ,

disport th emselves on a golden backgr ound t h eir rou n ded ,

l imbs proving the artist to be a student of n ature thou gh ,

here and there the foreshortening is deficient H e has take n .

a si m ilar s ubj ect for th e fi n e outer pulpit on the cathedral at

P rato i n w hich M ichel ozzo was associated w ith him
,
The .

g r oups of children h ere are very lovely T he commission w as .

given on M ay 2 7 143 4 ,
.

The bronze group of J ud i th a nd Hol of er n p s in the L oggia ,

’
(l e La n zi alt h oug h by no means his b est w ork is the
, ,
’
most fam ous o f D on atel l o s statue s because the m o st his ,

t or i cal l y significant It gre w into the turbulent h ist o r y o f

.

that time and was m ade a standard o f party feeling by each

,

governm e nt in its turn Tak ing J udith al ways as a type .

o f Florence Donatel l o made h i s desig n emblematic o f t h e

,

expulsi on of the tyrant D u k e o f A th ens w hich to ok pl a ce ,

o n J uly 2 6 13 46
, For m ore th an half a ce n tury it stood
.

i n th e palace of th e M edici but w hen i n 149 5 P iero

d e M edici w as i n h i s turn dri ven ou t the Rep ublic removed
’
,

i t to the Ringhiera o f the P alazzo Vecchi o which i s shar e d ,

with the M a r zocco or L ion of the Republic O n its base th e y .

placed the insc ription E x e mplum sal pub civ e s p os uere

, . . . . .

M C C C C X CV
”
So D onatel l o s statue became traito r to itsel f
’
.
,

a n d made an exam ple o f i ts fo r mer p o s s ess o r A gain i n .

15 04 i t was deposed to the L oggia de La n zi to mak e r o om for

’

M ichel a n gel o s more n oble type of David the superstit ious

’

p e ople lo ok i n g on it as an ill omened sta tue an d the cause of-

t h e vicissitudes of the city A s a work of art the group is

.

n o t on e of D on atel l o s best
’
I t is a dig n i fied composition
.
,

but the drapery is rath er con f use d and i n gai n ing s olidity ,

freed om is i n a m easure sacrificed It w as D on ato s great aim .

’

to get all the limbs well within the lines of the comp ositio n,
 DO N AT ELL O . 81

to ensure safe ty i n casti ng an d against accide n ts T hus his .

gr oups a r e a p t to become a solid mass the attitudes s o ,

rest r ai n ed that n one of th e limbs ar e fr e e .

For t h e Baptiste r y h e sculptu r e d a M a gd a l en in w o od ; ,

th e b r onz e S J oh n n ow i n th e Ba rgell o m ay als o be dated

.
, ,

f r om t h is tim e In b oth thes e his i n te n se reali s m c om es ou t

.

fo rci b l y The M agdal en is a w oman w or n ou t w ith s orr ow

.

a n d d e s pa i r The St J oh n is n ot the mi racul ously sustai n ed

. .
-

m an o f G od but an emaciated fig ure w ith a d elicat e ly

, ,

m ould ed but w eak face ,

in fact a h uma n b ei n g fai n t a fter ,

a l on g fas t So n atu ralistic w as h e that w he n by ch an c e he

.
,

took a fli gh t i n to all ego r y h e b e ca m e quite u n i n telli gible A s ,

.

an i n s tan c e take th e cu r i ous l ittle bron ze statue at th e

Ba rgell o o f a w i ng ed c h ild w ith the sh o es of M ercu ry ,

an d t w o l oo se leggi n gs drawn up to a b e lt by w ay of

d r ap e r y He is w alki n g u n c om fo r tably am on g sn ak e s
.
,

se e mi n g to impl ore assis tan ce He has b een called M e r cu r y .

,

but i s m o r e lik ely to h e a Cupid t ravesti ed .

O n Jun e 19 th 1444 w e first fi n d D on atell o in P a dua

, , ,

w h ere h e h as le ft som e of his fi n est w ork s He is sp oke n o f .

i n the regist er of S A nton i o as M D on at ell o di Fi ren ci e ch e

0
.

fa i l C r u ci fis o This b eauti ful c r ucifix w as fi n ish e d by J un o

”
.

22 ,
It i s t h ough t t h a t be s ides th is h e m ad e an e n ti r e
altar to S An t oni o al th o u gh n o w the d i ffe r en t par ts o f it a r e
.
,

d isp e rs ed about t h e c h u r c h In th e c h ap e l o f th e S Sac r a . .

me n t o ar e th e h as r eli e fs of th e predella : A D ea d Ch r i s t
-

bet w ee n t w o a n g els an d at th e si d es t w o M i ra cl es of S , .

A n toni o w ith f ou r A n ge l s
,
Un der th e orga n gall e ry are th e .
-

four Sym bol s of th e E va ngel i s ts all nobly e xecut e d w o rks ,

-
.

Th e pa r ap e t o f th e h i gh alta r h a s severa l exquisite relie fs

an E ece Hom o ; S A n ton i o
. sh o wi ng th e h ea r t o f th e m is er
1
G on zati , La B il i as ca di S An ton i o, d oc 8 1,
.
’
. v ol . i p . . 85 .

E IS
. . . G
 EA R LY IT AL I AN SC UL P T O R S .

S A n ton i o h ea l i n gf th a wou n d in
fi
’
o
i n h is co er ; .
a you

h is foot .
O ver the altar is the ab o v e me n ti on ed -

gr at e

V G IN
IR A ND C H LDI . B r li
rs
a -
e e f by D O NAT E LLO . I n Fl or ence .

cru cifix and in a n iche the Fo ur P a tr on Sa i n ts of P adua

, ,

w ith the Vi rgi n a n d Ch i l d A l l these w o rks sh o w his fi n es t

.
 EA R LY ITAL I A N SC UL P T O R S .

early as 145 1 pr obably on his way to P adu a H ere he w as

,

paid ten gold ducats for giving his j udgment on some m o dels
of statues w hich w ere to be fused in br onze for t h at city .

Next w e fi n d h i m i n Venice where he carved a wood e n ,

statue o f S J oh n th e B ap ti s t for the church o f the Frar i :

.

C ic ogna r a also attributes to him an ex quisite w o r k i n bro n ze ,

which o n ce forme d the d o o r of a ciboriu m i n the c h u r ch of t h e

Ser v i . I n Faenza are tw o w oo d en statues by him a S , .

J erom e w h ich has lat e ly — i a 18 45 — bee n rest o red a n d

,

coloured ; 1 and th e b us t o f S J oh n w hic h is n o w much .

, .

i nj ured .

He w as n ot l on g in Florence on his r e turn fo r other com ,

m issio n s ca m e fro m Siena and he r e tu r ned there o n O ct 1 7

, .
,

1 45 7 to mak e three a n gels and tw o statuettes o f HOp e an d

,

Faith for the font It w as also design e d that he should

.

mak e the b ro n ze doo r s o f the Baptist ery o f Sie n a ; these ,

ho w ever h e scarcely bega n The statue o f S J oh n in the

,
. .
,

ch a p l t o that sai n t i n t h e cathed r al w as pr o b ably m ade i n

t
,

Fl o rence for w e re ad t h at the right ar m w as b r oken in tr nsit

,
a .

Vasa r i says th at Donatello br oke it because he w as n ot paid

the w h ole p rice this is n ot true for th e books of the Duom o ,

o f Sie n a p r o v e t h e full paym en t

2
The statue is n o w e n tire . .

Th e last y ea r s of D onato s l ife w e r e spen t i n Florence where

’

h e w or k ed m uch for C osimo de M edici i n the sacristy of S

'
’

, .

L ore n zo Four r ou n d reliefs o f scenes f r om th e lives o f the

.

eva n g e lists a re l e t i nto the v aulti n gs of th e roof Two .

statues of s ai n ts sta n d o ver tw o o f the d oo r s an d a head o f ,

S L a w r ence o ve r the thi r d p o r tal

.
O n e n iche in th e w all s .

co n tai n s a S L a w rence and S Stephan a n d a n other SS

. .
, .

C o smo an d Damian The d oors are also by Donatello but

.
,

1 M il an es i ‘
An n ot V riasa
’
v ol 11 p 412 t
n o e.

l V i
. .
, .
, .

2 M i an esi , ‘
A nn ot . asar ,
’
v ol . ii p. . 41 5 n ote .
 DO N AT E LL O .

th ey are less artistically m oulded and l es s ca r efully finish ed

t h a n his o th e r w o rk s .

Th e t w o large square pulpits in the na v e of th e same

c h urch w hich he d e sig n ed a n d be gan but w hich his pupil
, ,

L e rtol d o fi n ished are c o v ere d w ith magn ifice n t a n ti r elievi of

’
-

th e L i fe and P a s sion of Ch r i s t C ic og n a r a w h o gives illus

.
,

t rat i o n s fr om the m says he d oe s n ot k n o w w h ich to admi r e

,

m o st th e fi n e classic style the phil os ophy o f a r t or the

, , , ,

sublime exp r essi on of th e passi on s 1

In the D ep os i ti on fr om
.

th e Cr oss a numbe r of w om e n sh o w in th e ir attitud e s the

utm ost a ba nd on of pity g r ief an d sympath y
, , .

Th e b r onze statu e of S L oui s of T oul ous e n ow o ver the

.
,

d oor in th e nave o f Santa C ro ce w as on e o f his latest w orks, .

A c ontempo r a r y c r itic said h e h ad made the f ace too stupid

”
but said D onatell o I did it on purp ose ; h e m ust have
, ,

be en stupid to gi ve up a th r o n e to bec ome a m onk ”

.

1 Ci cogna r a, v o l IV
. . ch . 112 — 114 .
THE ANNUN C IATI ON . Ba s -
r li
e e f by In S Cr oce, Fl or ence
. .
88 E A R LY IT A L I A N SC U P L T ORS .

it
. D onatell o seems never to have lost a frie n d ; his genial
disposition e n deared him t o al l w h o k n e w him Hi s g r eat .

charm was his simplicity o f ch a r acte r which no amou n t of ,

adulation could spoil or success w eaken C osimo de M edici

,
.
’

w as m ore than pat r on he w as h i s f r iend although he never ,

succeeded in c on ven tionali z ing t h e simple artist C osimo .

,

t h ink in g his f r ie n d did not appear in ve r y courtly d ress sent ,

him a prese n t o f a rich scarlet cloak a cap and doublet ; but , ,

h aving w orn them once and feeli n g u nco m fortable in such

,

u nusual grandeur he retu r n e d th e m forth w i th to the d onor

,
.

A t his death C osimo rec o m m en ded his favourite to his son

P iero w h o gave Donatello a count r y h o use at C a ffagi u ol o
,
.

H ighly delighted at being a lan ded propriet or the sculptor ,

w e n t to take p os s es sm n but at the end of a year he begged

P iero to take his p od er e back again saying he really could ,

not sta nd the tro ubles o f havi n g co n ta d i n i who complained ,

to him if the wind ble w do wn the pigeon ho use or the -

C ommune took a w ay their oxen to pay the a r r ears of taxes ,

o r if the storms spoil e d the f r uit

. 1 would rather die of.

hun ger th an have so ma n y w or r i e s exclaimed poor D onatello , .

P iero de M edici made him happy by assigning him a settled

’

pension and he he n cefo r th li v ed quietly in his little house

,

and ga r den in Via del C ocom er o w ith his aged mother a n d

wido w ed sister for he never mar ried In his si m ple way
, .

h e enj oyed life loved a convivial feast among his fellow

,

artists a nd like a true Floren tine e n j oyed his feste There

, ,
”
,
.

is a letter extant f r o m his frie n d M atteo of P rato the organ ,

builde r ( maker of the orga n in the Flore n tine D uomo for ,

which L uca della Robbia sculptured the gallery ) to the

company o f the D uomo of P rat o asking for e u advance of , .

payment to D onatello who had finished o n e of the reliefs for

,

the pulpit of the Cintola at P r ato as D on ate was greatly in ,

 C HA RA C T ERI STI CS . 89

need of m oney to spend at the approaching fest a M atteo .

begs them to accede to the request addi n g that Do n atello is

,

a man to w hom every little t reat seem s a great d eal an d that

,
”
he is c on tent w ith little . He died in his o wn house on
Dec 13 th 146 6 aft e r havi n g been l on g paralysed
.
, , .

He v as bur ied i n San Lor enz o wh re Cosi m o had d uring

,
e
,

his li fe time give n h i m a sepulchre His tomb h as s in ce

-

,
.

pass ed into th e ha n ds o f th e Scalan d roni family.

 CHAP T E R VI .

SC HO L A RS OF DO N AT E LL O .

great master had ma n y pupils B ERT OLD O DI .

G I O V A NNI w h o i n herited h i s master s designs and ’

artistic beloon gi n gs i s bet er k no w n as having been direct or

,
-

o f the A rt sch oo l i n the M edic i G arden w here all the young

-

sculpt ors of the s ucceeding ge n e r ation were t r ai n ed i n

D o natel l o s p r i n ciples and whe r e M ichela n gelo sculptured
’
,

h 8 fi r st w o rk .

O n e o r tw o o f B er tol d o s indep endent wo r ks ma rk him as

’

a sculpt or of some merit especially a fine meda l of M a h omet

,

II w hich has o n the reve r se a triumphal car of Vict ory

,

di aggi n g thre e n ude femal e figu r es chai n ed C icog n a ra .

j udges these to be m odelled as finely as the Graces In 1 48 5 .

he sculptured tw o che r ubs in w ood for the o rgan o f the

Du o mo at Fl or e n ce w hich had been n ewly built by M atte o
,

di P r ato In the b r onze ro o m at the Bargel lo is a battle

.

scene in b ron ze w hich if it is the w or k of Berto ldo s tamps

, , ,

h i m as an artist of great me r it There is i n tense spirit and

.

life in both ho r ses an d m en The pulpits of S L orenzo . .

,

w hic h he finished Sh o w ed s ome artistic facility

,
H e died at .

P oggio a G a j ano in Dec 149 1 after tw o days illness

’
. .
,

NA NN I D I A NT O NI O D I BA N C O was on e of D on atel l o s ’

favouri te scholars not so much for his genius i n art as for his
,
92 EA R LY ITA L I A N SC UL P T O R S;

by Donatello the f ourth w as to be given to the artist who

,

best executed the fi r st o r der Some say D on atello did the .

fourth S M att h ew ; others ascribe it to C i u ffagn i

,
. The .

relief kno wn as the M a n d orl a ove r the do or of the Du omo

which l oo k s to w ards Via dei Servi has been attributed to ,

Nan n i but it is not auth en ticated

,
The four sculptured .

”
h a s reliefs of the
-
A gn us Dei the arms O f the A rte della ,

la n a ( w hich are to be seen on a ve r y O ld house once ,

the head quart er s of the G ai l d at the back o f O r San

-

M ichele ) we r e certainly his wo r k

,
Vasari gives 143 0 as the .

date of his death But B al d i n u cci pro ves from som e manu
‘

,
.

s cr ipts i n th e St r o zzi family that he died in 142 1 The ,

.

a r ch i ves of Flo r ence have the r egistratio n of his will on Feb .

9 th 1 42 1
,
He w as buried in Santa Croce ha v i n g risen to
.

emi n ence in the city .

V E LL A N O D A P A DUA w h ose real n ame was Bartol ommeo ,

Bellano was the o n e of D o n atel l o s Sch olars w h o most closely

,
’

imitated his manner He w as born about and

.

entered D onato s studio in P adua about 145 2 afterwards

’

accompanying his maste r to Flo r ence He was also well .

k n o wn as an archi tect being em pl oyed by P ope P aul I I in ,

.

tome in 1464 to restore and embel l ish h is palace

, ,
His .

pri n cipal works in bro n ze are in the church of S A ntonio .

i n P adua whi ther he returned in 148 8 to cast a series of

,

reliefs of Sc r ipt ural sub j ects to place rou n d the choir T hey ,
.

a r e — 1s t Ca i n h i tti ng A bel : 2 n d Sa cr ifi ce of Is a a c : 3 rd
, , ,

J os ep h s ai d : 4th , P h a r a oh 5 t h , Th e gol d en
’
s h os t d r o wn ed
ca l f : 6 th , Th e br on
ze s erp en t : 7th , Sa m s on br ea ki ng th e
p i l l a rs : 8 t h ,
D a vi d d a n ci ng bef or e th e a r k : 9 th , J u dg
m en t of Sol om on : 10th , J ona h a n d th e wh a l e ” These a e . r
1 Mi l an e s i ,
‘
A n n ot V r as a i v ol II p 6 03 n o e. t
v
. .
, . .

2 B ran d ol es e, G ui da da l a d o ‘
a,
’
1 79 5 .
 SC HO L AR S or DO N AT E LL O . 93

very much i n th e style of Donatello but less artistically

'

beautiful .

The r e a r e seve r al monuments by Vellan o in other chu rches

of P adua and a g ood relief of the Al a d onna en th r oned
,

w ith S Francis and S P e ter M artyr in the church of S

. .
, .

Fr ancesco In P erugia h e executed in 146 7 a la rg e s tatue

. , ,

in bron ze of P ope P aul w hich was decre ed by the city

in rec ogniti on of public services rendere d by that P opc
He is represented in ful l P on ti fical s a nd s eated in a nich e ,

over the d oor of th e Duomo The statue which cost 1000 .

,

gold fl ori n s was taken do w n in 179 8 w hen the French we r e

, ,

i n P erugia and w as decre e d by the ed i les to be m elted and

,

made i n to the pieces of mo n ey of fi ve b aj occh i each kn o w n , ,

as AIa d onni ne Later in life V ellan o had his famous dispute

.

w ith V er roch i o about the commissi o n for the m onume n t to

Barto lom m eo Be rgamo o r Col eon i of Ve n ic e which had ,

unwisely been given to both a r tists Vellan o ho w ever re .

, ,

tired f rom the c on test and re turned to P adua where he

, ,

died full of age and honours ab out 15 00 and w as bu r i ed ,

in the church of 8 A nt on i o w hich he and his master had

.
,

so richly adorn ed .

He left a p upil named Andrea Riccio of whom Cic ognara

, ,

speak s v ery e n thusiastically The a r tist s real name w as

.
’

A ndrea Brioschi but he was ca l led Riccio be cause h e had

, ,

curly hai r He was b orn in 1470 i n P adua A f ter th e

.
,
.

death of Vella n o he adde d t wo m ore to the ten bro n ze re liefs

in the choi r of S Antoni o The subj ects w e r e D a vi d a nd
. .

G ol i a th and J u d i th a nd Hol of em es
, T h ey w ere b egun in .

15 07 and fi n ished 15 16
, These and the fam ous bronze can
.

d el ab r a in the same church were his cap i d op er a an d s o ’

much did he appreciate h i s ow n fame that he coi n ed a ,

medal to c elebrate it His bes t w ork ou t of P adua is the

.
94 E AR LY ITA L I A N SC U P OL T RS .

mausoleum of the Della T orre family in Verona adorned ,

with br on ze reliefs of mythol ogical and classical subj ects It .

was removed to P a ris by the Fre n ch There are twenty .

four reliefs of the st or y of the Inven tion of the Holy C ross ,

n o w in the Belle A rte at Ve n ice which were cast by Riccio ,

for the chu r ch of the Servi in that city He was also .

a rchitect of the chu r ch of Sta Giustina at P adua a curio u s ,

b u i l d i n g w i th a multiplicity of Domes
,
He di ed on the 8 th .

of J uly 15 3 2 , .

D E SI DE R I O D A SE TTI G N A N O rose to such em inence as few of

D on atel l o s sch o la r s reached bei n g e n do w ed w ith his mast e r s
’ ’

facility of execution a very high finish of style an d a g r eat , ,

d elicacy and grace i n comp osition He w as the s on o f a sto n e .

cutter named Ba r tol omme o di Fr an cesco call ed Ferro at

, , ,

Settignano n ea r Flo r e n ce and was born in 1 42 8 died J an

, ,
.

16 146 4
,
His brother Geri r emai n ed a mere h e w er of stones
.
,

b ut Deside r io soon exch anged the mechanical for th e a r tistic

&

’
u s e of th e chisel and b egan his studies in D on atel l o s studio
, .

M any o f his ea rlie r wo rks are un fortuna tely lost but on e ,

maste rpiece remains in the t omb of C a r lo M arsu ppi ni i n

Santa C roce M arsu ppi n i d ied i n the year 145 5 after a life
.

o f public eminence as G o ve r n o r o f G enoa Secretary to Ki n g

, ,

C harles VI o f France and then Secreta r y to P ope E uge n ius

.
,

IV . O n his death h e was cro w ned with l aurel at h i s ,

funeral obse q uies and Desiderio sculptu r ed his e ffigy repos

,

i n g on a sarc o phagus supp orted by genii and ad or n e d w ith ,

sphinxes and arabesques Tw o a n gels hold th e festo on s .

,

above the arch an d a cha r ming fil a d on n a a n d Ch i l d fill the

,

lu nett a Th e w hole t omb is c o ve r ed with orn ame n t but s o

.
,

ha r monized an d refi n ed in t aste that the e ff ect is o n ly an

inte n se rich n ess .

In the church o f San L orenzo is an al tar in the chap e l of .

96 EA RL Y IT A LI A N SC U P O L T RS .

the Sac r amen t which was done by Desiderio ; a lo v e l y

,

little Child J esus stands up on it w hi ch w as so m uch ,

esteemed that i t w as only shown on Christmas Day until

16 77 w hen it was placed permanently on the altar
, .

Th e P alazzo Strozzi boasted u ntil lately of a fine specimen

of his w ork i n the bust of M arietta P alla St r o zzi wife of ,

C elio Cal cagn i n i of Ferra r a

,

It i s m ost highly finished ; .

n a u r al l y moulded and richly draped ; the k ind of base o n

‘

w hich the bust rests is sculptured w ith recumbent fi gures

and w inged genii in relief This bust is n e w in Fr ance
, . .

1
Cicognara attributes to Desiderio the beautiful base covered ,

with Ha r pies w hich supp orts the bronze Bacchus in the

,

gallery o f antique bron z es at Florence but the authors h ip is

not certain He made the base to D on atel l o s David which
.
’
,

fr om its description seems to have been sim ilar to that o f ,

the Bacchus an d has p r obab l y bee n adapted to it

,
.

In 145 3 he w as m ade m ember of the Fl orentine G uild of

M aest r i di P i e tra
”
He married you n g and di ed in 146 4
.
, ,

leavi n g his w id o w with tw o children H e was buried in .

S P ie r o M aggiore an d his tomb w as covered with epigrams

. ,

and s onnets on e of which after saying that Nature seeing

, ,

his po w ers emulate h er ow n , quenched the light of his

”
genius ends thus ,

Ma i n v an , p erch e cos tu i
Die v it a e e n a ait r m arm i e i m an n i
, a 1m .

M ICHE Loz z o M IC HE LO Z Z I,
Bart olomme o di G herardo son of ,

bo r n 13 9 6 died 1472 (2) was not only scholar but friend of

, ,

Do n atello w hom h e assisted in man y of his m ost importan t

,

w ork s bei n g especially cleve r in casti n g b r onze

,
He prob .

ably got h i s expe r ience in this branch i n the studio of

Ghiberti who was his fi r st master as his denu n zia for
,
”
,

1 St o ri a d ell a Scultu r
a, v ol . IV . cap . iii p
. . 1 5 0—4 .
 SC HO LARS or DO NAT E LL O . 97

142 7 sho ws for he mentions a credit he h ad w ith the Arte

,

del C ambi o for the statue of San M atteo wh en h e was wi th ,

’

L o r enzo d i B a r tol o
”
In 1442 he w as on e of G h i b e r ti s
.

ass istan ts in casti n g the Baptis tery do ors but he must have ,

w orked as a j our n e yman at that time for he had man y years ,

before been ass ociated w ith Do n atello w h om b e as s i sted i n the ,

—
tomb of P ope Joh n XXIII in 142 6 2 8 There are s everal . .

i n depende n t w o r ks in sculpture of Mi eh el ozzi in Flo rence .

l s t A sil v e r fi gu r e of S J ohn Bapti st mad e for the Baptistery

,
.
,

i n 1 45 2 Th is has been att ributed to P o llaj uol o but the

.
,

P r eposto G e ri in his M on uments Basilicae Bap ti s te r ii

,
.

Fl or en ti i bri n gs d o cuments to prove the true author 2 md A

’
.
, ,

round r elief of St John i n ter r a cotta ab o ve the do or of the

.
, ,

O pe r a del Du omo this w hich is really by M i eh el ozz i has been ,

placed i n the stead of the marble re l ief of the same subj e ct

by Rosselli n o w hich i s now rem o ved to the Barg ello 3 rd A .
,

gr a ti col a ( grati n g) o f br onze for the al tar of the chapel of ,

S Ste fa n o in the D uomo

. 4th The bell o f the cl o ck of .
,

P al azzo Vecchio cast i n 145 3 He w as empl oyed by the

, .

Z ecca bet w een 1 42 2 — 48 to cut the dies for th e c o ins , .

Thes e few w orks w ith som e at G en oa w hich are n ot ,

authenticated and the sculpture in w hich he assiste d Dona

,

te ll o a r e th e on ly pro ofs remai n i n g of his skil l i n the art

, .

His greatest fame w as as an a r chi tect — Co simo de M edic i ’

ha v i n g empl oy ed him to bui ld a palace for h im now k nown ,

as th e P alazzo Riccardi i n Via Cavou r a gran d mountai n ,

o f he w n sto n e —and to replace the columns of the C ort i le in

,

t h e P ala zz o Vecchi o which b e erected one by one i n such a ,

w ay as n ot to enda n ger the safety of A rn ol fo s buildin g ’

.

These c olum n s w ere dec orated with arabe sque reliefs in ter r a
c otta on the occas i on of the ma r riage of Francesco de M edici ’

’
with Giovan na d Austri a in 15 65 H e d ec orate d se veral .

E IS
. . .
H
98 EA RLY IT A LI A N SC UL P T O R S.

roo m s in the palace with sculptured or mo u lded corn ices an d

friezes The Con vent of San M arco w as erect e d by him
.

under th e decree of Cosimo de M edici an d the h ull of P ope

’

Fugen i u s IV . Cosimo employed him in erecting his villa

at Careggi and the o n e at Fiesole since called Villa M ozzi
, .

His buildings s h o w the drawi n g of what w as a fter w a r ds

k n ow n as Re n aissa n ce style They w ere m ore an E t r uscan
.

than Roman revi val ho w ever H e was e m ployed as architect

, .

i n R ome and other ci ties w as i n o ffice in the O p era of

,

the Duomo as p r ovedito re bet w een 1446 an d 1 45 1 He

“ ”
.

died alt er a long an d useful l ife and w as buried i n San,

M arc o on O ct 7th 1 472.

,
Fr a A ngelico has pai n ted his
.

liken ess in the D ep os i ti o n f r om th e Cr oss n ow in the Belle

,

Arti Fl o r ence
,
H e is the fi gure with a black cap talking to
.

N icode m us .
Tu n N a r xv m . BAS
-
I
RE L E F. BY L
UCA DE LL
 P A RT I .

MAST E RS OF THE FI FT EE N T H CE N T URY .

C H A P TE R I .

M] NO DA I
F E SO LE .

N the previ ous v olume on the Italian Sculptors 1 we have ,

given a slight sketch of the rise of sculpture under the

P isani and its devel opmen t i n Fl orence u n der the two gr eat
,

masters Ghib e r ti and D on ate llo r om these t w o each so

‘

.
, ,

excellen t In ar t yet di v erse in style sprang two disti n ct ,

sch ools . Do n atello heads the ea r nest naturalistic scho ol ,

w h ich bl en di n g a study of classic art with a t r ue love of

,

natu r e brou gh t forth such artists as V e rr o cchio L uca della

, ,

R obbia C i v i tal e Jacop o d ella Quercia and finally culm i nated

, , ,

i n M ichelangelo G h ib erti s p olished pict o r ial style becomin g

’
.
,

em b u ed w ith the spi r it of the Renaissance in i ts later

phases produced the deco r ous or nate w orks of Rossel li n o
, ,

D e sideri o da Settignano th e M aj an i Rov ez zan o and San

, ,

s o vin o Y et the foll o wers of Donatello p oss essing a more

.
,

per fect technical know ledge w ant the sp ontaneous earnestness

,

1
G h i bert i an d Don ate ll o
.
’
1 00 E RLY A ITAL IAN SC UL P T O R S .

’
w hich so charm i ng in his ow n wor k s and G h i b er ti s
is ,
’
successors with more learning lack their master s i ntuitiv e
pe r ceptio n and fi n ished composi tion .

In D on atell o s school li ve the free spirit of the Republic

’

’
and a childlike de v otion to nature ; in that of G hi b erti s
successors the sophist i cation and pedantry of the Renaissance
,

make themselves eviden t .

A mong the masters of the fif teenth century who can

scarcely be classed with either school is the purist M i n e da
Fies ole who might be call ed the Fr a Angelico am ong sculptors
, ,

so devotional and purely conceived are his wo r k s and ,

so delicate and soft his style A lthough called Fi esol an .

,

M i n e was born in 143 0 1 at P oppi in the Casenti no his -

, ,

father being Gi o van n i di M ini 1

He was a scholar of Desi .

derio or perhaps it would be more pr oper to say an associate ,

,

as the two artists were nearly the same age He cert aml y .

followed the style of D es ide r io adding to it a higher finish , .

a less sophisticated manner and the charm of his own pure , ,

devotional mind .

His first k no w n independent wor k was the bust of R i na l d o

,

d el l a L u na executed in , soon after which he mus t have

taken his fi rst j ourney to Rome whither he went in 146 3 to ,

assist other sculptors in the p ulpit of the P apal Benediction at

St P eter s Here he so dist i nguished hi mself that the Car di n al
’
. .

G i r olamo d E stou tev i l l e employed him to sculpture the altar

’

of San Girolamo in the church of Santa M aria M aggiore

, .

He executed some beautiful reliefs of scenes from the l ife

1 We gath e th i s f r r
om Li b r o d ell a Mat ri col a d e Maestri d i
“
il
’

p iet ra e ”
legn ame, wh e r
e h e i s cal l ed M in u s J oh an n i s M i n i d e P u i o
p
p ap ers to ) of 1 46 9 70 h e d ecl ares hi ms el f 40 years
.

In t h e tax -

( ca tas -

o f age .

3
M il an es i ,
‘
An n ot . V rias a ,
’
v ol . iii p . . 12 9 .
1 02 EA RL Y IT A LI A N SC UL PT O R S .

By this time h e had been t w ice ma rr ied his first w ife being ,

Francesca dau gh ter of a carpenter named A ngelo and his

, ,

second G iana di Giuliano d A n ton i o His first s on G iulia n o

,
’
.

was born in 1466 and die d in the same year He was

, .

followed however by six brothers who all lived

, , , .

M ino s next impo r tant wo r k w as the t o mb in the Badia

’

at Florence of Be r nardo Giug n i an emi n ent citizen and

, ,

Florentine ambassad or who died 146 6 A figure of J ustice

,
.
,

very much in the style of Desiderio fills the lunette of the arch ,

above the sarcophagus on w hich the deceased is lying in

effi gy the w h ole tomb is in relief on the wa l l of the church .

The m onks o f the Badia w ere so pleased with this t omb ,

that they commissioned h i m in 1469 to sculpture a m enu

m ent to the f ounder of their ab b ev C ount Ugo The Cou n t , .

lived in the te n th centu r y and like m ost m edi aeval saints was
,

converted from a w or ldl y life by a vision Hav ing lost his .

w ay in a f or est while hunting he came on e day to a forge on ,

w hich the devil was beating ou t the blac k souls of the con
d em n ed li k e bars of i r on So horror struck was C ount U go
.
-

that he vo w ed himself to a l ife of penitence forth w ith s old

his estates an d built seven abbeys of which the Badia w as ,

on e. In the tomb which M i n e sculptured to his memory ,

he follo w ed very nea r ly the c omposition of the Giugni tomb ,

but in the place of J ustice he placed Charity and a lovely

M adonna and C hild in the lunette of the arch The whole .

tomb is h ighly ornate and richly finished He w as paid , .

1 600l ire for it besides an additi onal sum on J an 4th 1 48 1

, .
, ,

because he had made severa l accessories of marble instead of

limestone .

In the same year 1469 his ol d patron D i eti sal vi N eron i

, , , ,

de s i r ed him to sculpture a M adonna and C hil d w ith St ,

.

L eonard and St L awrence in mezzo rilievo which he intended

.
,
 MI NO D A F E SO L EI . 103

to place in the ch apter house of San L orenz o but at N eron i s

-

,
’

death it fe l l i n t o the ha n ds of the Dieci di Balia in th e ,

name of his creditors and was placed in the sacristy of the

,

Badia the m o n ks of the ord er pay ing M i n e on O ct 13

, , .
,

1 470 thi r ty t wo la rge gold fi or i n s w h ich w ere st i ll due to him

,
-

, ,

and they t ook off part of the rent of h i s house w hich belo n ged
to the monastery 1
The relief is n o w over a private altar in
.

th e conve n t .

In 147 1 Nin o s second j ourn ey to Rome took place

’

Cardinal B ar b e having empl oyed him to make the tomb

for his uncle — that vain e st o f P opes P aul 11
,
H is design , .

w as ext remely rich the whole work being covered w ith

,

ornamentatio n in the shape of win ged boys arabesques and

, , ,

scrolls The sarc ophagus on w hich the e ffi gy of the P op e

.

reclined w as covered w ith Scriptural and allegoric relie fs

, .

Th e colum n s w hich supported the arch ab o ve were adorned

w ith saints in niches the lu n ette was filled with h as reliefs
,
-

of th e Last J udgment and the Resurrection the C reati on ,

o f E v e and the Temptati on besides fig ures of Faith and ,

C ha r ity i n r elief In the fir s t named P aul II an d the

.
-

, .

E mp e r o r Frederick I II are being introduce d into heaven .

by St J ohn the Baptist

. .

The chu r ch of Santa M aria in Trastevere at Rome has a beau

tiful tabe rn acl e by M i n e Tw o angels susta in a little bronze .

d oo r which clos es the re ceptacle for the holy wafer A bove it .

C h rist with the cro ss in His hands holds a chalice fro m w hich
, ,

emanat es flame The arch whi ch surmounts thi s is supported

.

’
on Co rinthia n pilasters and adorned w ith cherubs heads , .

There is an architrave similarly scul pture d two statuettes ,

i n n iches and a tympanum in w hich i s a dove , embl e m of the

,

H oly Spiri t It is inscribed O pus M ini

. In the same y ear ,
.
,

M il anes i , An not . V riasa ,

’
v ol . iii . p . 12 0n ote .
104 A L
E R Y ITALIAN SC UL P T O R S .

1471, M i n e sculptured a sim ilar tabernacle for the D uo m o of

’
Volterra he al so made on e for the nuns of Sa n t A mbrogio .

I n this, instead of C hrist holding a vase of flame the Infant ,

B sr or N IC COLC STR
u o zzI . By M e DA FIE SC LE . In the B er l i n M us eu m .

J esus arises from the chal ice and the gradino has a relief of
the m i racle of the Sacrament The nuns w ere so pleased w ith
.

this highly fin i s h ed w ork that they paid w ithout demur the

-

full price demanded 16 0 fi ori n s The tabernacle Is n o w i n

, .
A N D RE A DEL V E RR O CCHI O .
 C H AP T E R I I .

A N DRE A D EL VE RR OCC IIIO .

LTHO UG H a m an of versatile talent being at the sam e ,

tim e a g oldsmith sculpt or i n ta gl i a tor e pai n t er an d

, , , ,

musician A n drea del Ve rr oc chio was n o t e n d o wed w ith

,

g e n iu s an d did n ot achie v e g r eat exc ell ence in any b ranch

, .

He is m ore famous as b ei n g the master of P erugin o and

L eonard o da Vinci w h o s oon s o ared beyond his i n s tr uc
,

ti o n s than for any g rea t w ork of his ow n

,
He w as .

bo rn i n 143 5 bei n g th e s on o f M ichele d i Francesco di

,

C io n e a bak e r and Na n n i n a his second wife

, , The artistic .

tale n t dc cs n ot seem to hav e b e en heredita r y A nd rea being ,

the first a r tist o f the family and his brothers fo llowing other
,

trades A nephe w and g r a n dnephe w w ere however painte rs

.
, , ,

probably his follo w e rs Th e name d e l Verrocchio was

.
”

probably giv en to him from his h aving studied g old work ing
w ith a c e r tain G iulian o Verr cchi
o 1 B al d i n u cci q u o ting an
.
,

ol d M S o f the Strozzi family asserts that Verrocchio was a

.
,

scholar of D onatell o and the fact that he helped that master

i n the marble La va bo of the sac r isty of San L orenzo renders
the assertion probable although there is no other positi ve
,

M il an es i , from Del Migliore

‘
R ifl css i on i at Vasa r i , MS Magl ia
’
.

b ecch i an Li brary Fl oren ce

,
.
1 08 A L
E R Y ITALIAN SC UL P T O R S .

proo f and his work s furnish no internal evidence of style

, .

It would seem that he was i n early life apprenticed to

Verrocchio the goldsmith and bega n painting l ater but did , ,

n ot follow ou t the care e r f or h e soon relin q uished the brush ,

’
for the chisel There might be a l ittle truth i n Vasari s story
.

that he gave it u p in anger because his pupil Le onardo had so

soon surpassed him in excell ence as his well kno w n a n gel in ,
-

the B ap ti sm of Ch r i s t at the Belle A rte remains to prove He .

may have recognised the fact of the mediocrity of his ow n

talent by that in cident and in a moment of discouragement ,

m ade a rash v o w not to paint again That he was of an .

impulsive hasty disp ositio n is show n by an i ncident of h i s

,

youth W hen he w as seventeen years of age ( 145 2 ) he w as

.

w ith several companions outside the w alls near the P orta a

P inti w hen they began to thro w stones and A ndrea so i nj ured
, ,

a boy named A n to n i o di D o menico that he died a few days

a fter wards I t was not till 145 3 that he was absolved fro m
.

1
homicide .

A lthough Vasari Speak s of chalices and buttons for p i vi a l i ,

worked by Verrocchio in his y o uth the earlies t documentary ,

evidence w e have of his employment in metal w o rk ing is the -

commission dated Sept 10 1468 for the ball to be placed

,
.
, ,

o n the cup ola o f th e D uomo I t w as completed in 1 471 .

,

and w eighed 43 68 Tuscan lbs It was not placed ho we v er .

, ,

til l M ay 2 7 1472 when i t w as dra wn up to its positio n

, , ,

“
an d next day at t h e ninth h o ur w as fixed i n the name o f
,

G od 2
T h is ball w as st r uck by lightning on J a n 17 16 00
.
”
.
, ,

and fell into the piazza I t was replaced by a larger on e .

made by Bronzino i n the time of Ferdinand I .

1 ‘
Li b r o d ell e P r vi i
o s on i d el l a R ep ubb li ca di Fi r en z e,
’
ann o 145 3 ,

a . c . 2 3 tor go .

2
T aken from th e Diar y of Luca Lan d uccr . MS .
1 10 EA RL Y IT A LI A N SC UL P T O R S .

It i s said by Vasari and repeated by m ost authors th at

, ,

whilst in Rome he sculptured a m onument in Santa M aria

s opra M inerva to Selvaggia the w ife of Fra n cesc o To r n ab u on i
, ,

w h o died in child bed of w hich monume n t the r e lief r ep r e

-

senting the scene of th e death b ed i s now by some stran ge -

chance in the Ba r g ello o f Flo r ence Si g G M ila n esi

,
1
. . .

proves that some mistake exists with regard to this reli ef an d

tomb There w ere only tw o of the family Torn ab uon i n ame d
.

Francesco on e of whom died in 143 6 w hile Verrocchio w as

,

an in fant ; an d the othe r died in 148 4 his wife M a r ietta ,

Valori survivi n g him Ba r on Reu m on t supposes th e tomb

.
,

i f made was to Franc esca di L uca P itti w ife o f G i o va n ni

, ,

Torn ab u on i ; basing his theory on a letter w r itten f r o m

R ome by G iovann i to L orenz o i l M agn i fico ann ouncing th e ,

d eath of his wife in child bed on Sept 2 4 1 477 but wh ether-

.
,
’
V errocch i o s relief w as ever sent to Rome or whether the tomb ,

was erected in th e church of San ta M aria sopra M i n erva ,

there i s nothing to prove Vasari might have co n f ou n ded .

h i s account of it w ith the tomb of Giova n ni Fran cesc o To r n a

bu oni erected i n that church by M i n e Fiesole V err o cch i o s
, .
’

reli ef w heth er or n ot it w as u sed for the pu r pose desi gned

, ,

is decidedly on e of his best w or k s in marble With al l h i s .

faults o f style and hardness of execution he h as i n this ,

attained to a great expression of passi on The dyi n g w om an .

is support ed on her couch and h er friends give w ay to u n r e ,

stra i ned grief arou n d her If Reu m on t s theory be tr ue

.
’

this work can n ot be d ated befo r e 1478 ; c ons eque n tly th e

b r on z e D a vi d of the Ba r gell o w hi ch w as made in 1476 , ,

m ust have bee n cast tw o years previously .

Th i s is a v e r y w ea k conception though a n imated an d ,

l ife like
-

The shepherd her o i s small and m eag re in his

.

1 ‘
A n n ot . V r as a i , v ol . iii p . . 3 60 .
D AVI D .
Br o n ze ta t ue by
S V E R R C C C IIIC . AD 1476 .

In t h e N at i ona l M useum , Fl or ence .

1 12 A L
E R Y ITALIAN SC UL P T O R S .

proportions ; his thi n face overpowered by a profusion of

cu r ls Scriptural tradition is defied by his being represe n ted
.

in a corslet and the left h and resting on the hip gives a

fi i pp an t attitude very much at variance with the subj ect A .

far better specimen of V err occh i o s genius is the bronze b oy ’

with a dolphin n ow on the fountain in the C ortile of the

,

P alaz z o Vecchio Florence — a charming bit of modelli n g

,
.

A little later he took his part in decorating the beautifu l

silver altar of the Baptistery of Florence for which he modelled ,

the compartment of the D ecol l a ti on o f St J oh n th e B ap ti s t ; .

and in 1471 he h ad begun the bronze group of St T hom as .

feel i ng th e woun d s of Ch ri s t w hich was placed in a tabernacle

,

m ade by D onatello on the f r ont of the church o f O r San

M ichele It was originally in tended that Donatello shoul d
.

sculpture the group for this n iche ; but there had been a
division of O pini o n am on g the consuls of the Guild of M er
chants wh o gave the order ; some wishing Gh iberti to have
,

the commission others Donatello The dispute rema i ned

,
.

u n decid e d during the lifetime of the two artists and was ,

afterwards given to Verrocchio The group is a fair specimen .

o f his style being crude and hard

,
and yet not devoid of ,

exp r ession It was not finished till 148 3 when he was paid
.
,

8 00 la rge fl orin s for it .

In 1 479 the Venetian Senate sent for And r ea Verrocchio

to cast an equestrian statue i n bronze of their general Bar ,

t ol om m eo C ol eon i on e of the most famous C ondottieri of the

,

t i me and the most formidable enemy of the Visconti of M ilan

, .

C ol eon i at his death at Bergamo in 1476 left hi s posses , ,

sions and gold fl ori n s to the Venetian Republic on

c onditi on th at his equest r ian sta tue sh ould be erected on the
P iazza of St M a r k The Senate k ept the lette r of the w ill
. .
,

but evaded the spirit by havin g it placed on the P iazza of

,
 1
1 4
1 EA RLY ITALIAN SC UL P T O R S .

the m i raculous altar in the church of the SS A nnunziata as .

v otive o ff erings were his work

,
.

The thr ee ea: votos of L orenzo de M edici made on the ’

,

occasion of his escape from the P azzi conspiracy are men ,

B OY D O LP HIN . B y V E R R o ccn Io .

Figur e on top of Founta i n i n t h e Cou r t f

o th e P al azzo Vecch i o, Fl or ence
.

ti on edas V errocch i o s masterpieces in this style He w as

’
.

assisted in these by his friend O rsino a famous worker in ,

w ax . O ne of them was dressed in the clothes which L orenzo

were at the ti me ( i f the con s piracy .
 A N D R EA DEL V E RR O CCHI O . 1 15

Verrocchio also made several cru ci fi x es in w ood and worked ,

i n t e rra cotta
. A fine cruci fi x in terra cotta by him is in the
South Kensington M useum N or did he disdain to fashion
.

th e figu r e of a boy to st r ike the hours on the cl o ck of the

M e r cato Nu o vo It is be lieved that he w as the first sculptor
.

wh o cast m oulds in plast e r of P a r is So much did he u s e

.

his n ew invention that it became a fashion i n Fl orence to

have a cast of the features of th e dead taken i n plaster ; so
”
th at every house had a collection of pe n ate s m ore a w ful
th an beautiful The ancients also u sed g p s umin casti n g
'

m oulds so that this was probably on e among the man y

,

classical revivals of the age .

A fte r V er rocch i o s death in 1 48 8 his disciple L ore n zo di

’

, ,

Credi brought his rema i ns bac k to Flo r e n ce and bu r ied ,

them in the church of Sant Am brogio in the sepulch re of

’
,

Ser M ichele di C ione .

Th e list o f his pupils c ontains several famous names

P ietro P e r ugino L eo n a rd o da Vin ci and L orenzo di Credi
, , ,

painters ; Francesco di Simone D on ate l l o s nephe w and

,
’

Nanni Gross o sculptors ; besides Agnolo di P olo a work er

, ,

in terr a c otta
.
 C H AP T E R IIL

MA TT EO C IVITA LI A N D V ITT O RE P ISA N O .

ATTE O, son of G iovanni C i vi tali di Lucca was on e ,

o f the fin est sculptors of his age although fr om the ,

fact of his best works being localized in a country town off

the beaten trac k of tourists he is not so well k nown as he ,

deserves to be It is not certai n whether he was an offshoot

.

of the Florentine or the Sienese school Vasari says he was .

p u pil of J ae e po della Quercia but chronology forbids the ,

supposition as M att o w as only born in 143 5 three years

,
e
,

after Della Quercia died It is probable that he had his.

artistic t raini n g in Flo r ence w here G hi berti Donate l lo and

, , ,

the Della Robbi e s still laboured .

Ci v i tali s fir st in dependent work was the tomb of P ietro

’

d a N oceto in the cathed r al of L ucca which was finished in

, ,

1472 . The similarity of this to D esi d eri o s to m b of M ar ’

s u p in i in S a n ta C roce has been tak en as a pr oof of his

p , ,

Florentine training Fl orenti ne a rtists were called i n to

.

value this tomb and A ntonio Rossel lino esteemed it at 45 0

,

du cats There is however onl y a note of payment of 3 5 0

.
, ,

for it to C i vi tal i .

In 1478 he adorned with marble sculpture the ch oir of

the D uomo of Lucca but when the cho i r was dest r oyed the
,
1 18 EA R LY IT AL I AN SC UL P T O R S .

in 149 6 to decorate the chapel where the ashes of St J ohn .

the Baptist repose For th is he scu l ptured six beautiful

.

statues life size of Ad a m E ve Z a ch a r i a h E l i za beth Ha ba k

,
-

, , , , ,

k u/r and Isa i a h

,
The Z achariah is especially fine and noble
.
.

In th e lunettes above Isaiah E v e and E li zabe th , were reliefs , ,

of scenes f r om the life of the Baptist .

The Uffi z i Galle r y of Florence possesses a lovely relief o f

Fa i th full of earnest religious feeling a charm which som e
,

of his work s possess in an intense degree H e died on .

O ctober mm 15 01 leaving a son N i ccol o wh o follo we d his

, , ,

father s art O thers of the C i vi tal i fa m ily have bee n als o

’
.

no ted as sc ulp tors and archi tects .

V ITTO RE P rs a x o , called P isanello alth ough he styled h im ,

s elf P i s an u s P ictor and was celebrated for the excellence

of his frescoes has nevertheless a place in th e se pages due

,

to his fame as a m eda llist Indeed the art of casti n g .

m edallions which had di ed out si n ce the days of the Romans

, ,

— i f w e exc ept the q uasi cla ssic coins of Frederic k II at -

.

Naples in the twelfth century— revi ved in Vittore P isan o ,

w ho se long line of follo w ers has given to Italy a collection

of medals almost equal in art to those of the Roman
,

E mpi r e Vittore was a Veronese born 13 8 0 (l ) died about

.
,

145 6 .

Vasari says he studied painting under Andrea del Castagn o '

in Fl m en ce but this i s n ot proved by any trustwo rth y

,

eviden ce All his earlier career seems howev er to have

.
, ,
?

been gi ven to painting He finished some f r escoes com .

m en ced by G entile da Fab r i au o in San G iovann i in La ter n o a

z

at R ome and adorn ed th e P el leg r ini chapel in the Chu rch

'

o f Sant A nastasia at Verona w ith some very charac teristic

’
,

fres coes of the li ves of St E us ta ce and St G eor ge A . . .

 P I SA N E LL O . 1 19

tem per a pa inti n g of St An th ony a nd St G eorge by him is in

. .

the Nati o n al Galle r y Th i s and a p ortrait of Leonello d E s te

.
’

i n the possessi on of C ommendat ore M orelli at M i lan are h i s ,

o n ly kn o w n pa nel pictu res .

We have principally to treat of his genius in the p l astic

a r t and ca n not d o b etter than qu o te the w ords of M onsign or
,

G i ov i o w h o writ es thus to Du k e C os imo

, Speaki n g of .

Vittore P isano he goes on to say

,

He was still m ore excellent in the art of h as reliefs -

w hich is esteemed ve r y diffic ult by artists as being a mean ,

be t ween the plai n surface of a p ainting and the round

of a statue We see h owever from hi s hand many rare
.
, , ,

medall ions of g reat princes made in a grand form and of the

,

exact s i ze of the reverse w hich G uido has sent me of th e

horse i n armour Amongst thes e I have th at of the great
.

k i ng A lfonso with h is long hai r — on the reverse is an ambus

cade of s oldiers t h at of P ope M artin w ith the arms of the ,

C o lo n na for re v erse ; that o f Su ltan M ah omed who too k ,

C onstantinople ( he is represen ted on horse back in Turkish ,

d ress and h olds a w hip i n his hand )

,
Sig i smo ndo M alates ta ,

w ith a reverse of M adon n a Isotta of Rimini and Nicc ol o

P icc inino with a long cap on his head and the be fore ,

mentio n ed rev erse of G u i d e w hich I return Besides this I

, .
,

have a most b eautiful m edallion of G iovan ni P ale ologus ,

emperor of C onstan tinople w ith tha t curi ous G r eek hat

,

which the emperors used to w ear This was made by P isan o

.

when he was in Fl oren ce at the time of the C ouncil of

,

E ugeni us w h ich the said E mpe ro r at tended The re verse is .

t h e cross of Chr ist ,s us tain ed by two hands meani ng the ,

Lati n and the Greek C hurches .

It seems tha t G i o vi o h as n ot qu ite w ell d escribed the

reve rse of th i s c oin which as it is engraved by M afi ei
, ,
12 0 E AR LY ITAL I AN SC UL P T O RS .

Verona shows the emp eror on horseback adoring ,

a cross planted on a roc k The gall ery o f Flor ence possesses .

thi s medall ion in gold it weighs t w o Tuscan pounds five

ounces I t is looked on as uniqu e the on e which was i n
.
,

the National M useum at P aris having disappeared The

'

following is a li st of al l the signed and authenticated

medal lions of Vittore Pi sano who became the portrayer of ,
'

a l most every contemporary Ita l ian prince

1 . N i l o Pi i
cco cc n i n o.

2 . Lion ello d Es te ( f ou r d ifi er ent m eda ls )

’ '

o
p Si gis m on d o Pan d o l fo M al at es ta ( t wo m eda l s) .

k Pi etr o Can d id e D e cem b r i e .

V itt ori n o d a Fel tre

g

Fi l i pp o M ari a V i scon ti
.

c .

r
x G i ov an n i Pal eol ogus ( coi ned
o
o Al fons o V of Ar agon ( two med a ls one da ted
.

Frances co Sforza
,

9
G
. .

10 G i o van F an cesco
. r o nz a
ga .

11 Cecili a G on zaga
v
.

12 Lod o i co III G on zaga

N v
. . .

13 M alatesta IV
. o ell o . .

14 I n igo d Av al os
’
. .

15 . T ito V es p as i an o Strozz i (a l a rge m eda l l i on of s qua r e

ver y
It i s , h owever , d ou btf u l i f th i s w as th e w or k of P i s a n o, th e a ge of
Ti to Str ozz i , as he i s r ep r esen ted , bei ng m uch beyond wh a t h e
wou ld h a ve been i n P i sa no s l if et i me)
'

The m edal of Filippo M aria Visconti ( N o 6) has a very .

enigmatical reverse which has never been interp r eted It is

, .

a warrior on horsebac k and two other horses on e of whi ch

'

, ,

is ridden by a page In the back ground is a city on a hill

.
,

thought to be G enoa and a nude figure with a lance in his ,

hand Hi s reverses were always more or less mystical and

.

poetical i n conception in some of them the art is extremely

fine and t rue in outline
, .

Vittore also m ade a medal lion with his own li k eness ; in

122 EA R LY ITA L I AN SC UL P T O R S .

which his head is uncovered An other medallion portrait of

.

him exists w ith a cap on the head an d a garland of laurel on

the reverse it is said to be the w ork of Francesc o C or radi n i .

That Vittore w as much esteemed by his contemporaries

is evident f r o m the fact that G uerino Vecc h io and Tit o
Vespasiano Strozzi celebrated his ge n ius in poems H e is .

“
il P isan o di G ue r ino
”
sometimes called from the firs t ,
’
n amed au thor The title of Strozzi s poem p ublished by
.

’
A ldo is A d P i s an u m P i ctorem and begins ,

Sta tu a ri u m que a n ti gu i s comp a r an d u m .

A certain Bart olommeo Facio wrote a boo k in 1466 c alled

’
‘
De Viris Il l u s tr i b u s in which Vittore is much praised
,
.

Vasari who was n ot very well infor m ed about artists beyond

,

the bounds of Tuscan y t ook his info rmation from a Veronese

,

author Fra M arco d e M edici and from the Italia Il lustrata

,
’

o f Biondo di Forli .

The scho ol of medallists an d cameo workers w h ich

I i s an el l o left behind him w as very l arge
’
The art flourished .

in most of the cities o f Italy during the fifteenth and

sixteenth centuries an d many famous n ames are on the
,

l i s t su ch as Bono Fer rarese C arad osso C orradini Domenico

,
.
, , ,

dei Camm ei the P ol l aju ol i Benvenuto C ellini and J ac opo

, , ,

Callot a Frenchman by birth who was patronized by the

, ,

M edici .

A few medallions by Vittore P isano and casts of several

others may be cons ulted i n the South Kensington M useu m .
 P ART II.

THE ART I ST FA MI LI E S O F THE

FIFIE E N TH C E N T UR Y
‘

C H A PT E R I .

THE R O S SE L L I N I.
.

N i oc o la P isano reigning al one and supreme may be

ca l led the Emperor of A rt in the thirteen th ce n tury ,

D onatell o and Ghiber ti were ri val k ings presiding over a ,

large aristocracy of artists in the fourteenth But in the .

fi f teenth century there w as a very c ommon weal t h of ar t ,

whole fa m ilies ri si ng to suc h excell ence as w o uld have given

t h em dazzling fame h ad they bee n less numer ous I t w as at .

th i s ti m e that the work s o f fresco and sculpture m ultip l ied so

greatly that every church and palace and e ven each private
, ,
’
citizen s house became a shr ine of art and Italy laid up a
, ,

sto re of beauties w hi ch rendered her rich even in her falle n

,

days and w hich a r e the b r ightest de corati ons of her n ew l ife

,
.

There w ere the G h i r l a ndaji the P ol l aj u ol i the Della Rob b i as

, , ,

the Muj ani , the Rossellini the San G alli the Del Tass o
, ,
124 EAR LY I T AL I A N SC UL PT O R S .

family al l in Florence the Ci vi tali i n L ucca and the

,

Ferrucci of Siena each emulating the res t in every form

,

of art .

I n so limited a space it is q uite i mpossible to give anything

like serious biographies of this illustrious multitude A few .

guides to their ch r onology and a mention of their principal

work s will be al l that w e can allow ourselves The G h i r l an .

d aj i and P ol l aju ol i have been treated of else w here but th e

1
,

Rosselli ni Dell a Rob b i as and M a j s a i have w on a p rominent

, ,

position in the hi story of scul pture .

THE R OSSELLIN I
w ere a fam ily o f five artistic brothe r s — D omenico ( b orn
B E R N AR DO ( b orn 1409 died Giovann i ( born ,

1417 d ied ,
Tommaso ( born and A NT O NI O
7 of M atteo di
( b orn 1 42 died They
, were the sons
Domenico Gambarelli the name Rosselli no being onl y a ,

bye name -
.

Be rn ardo rose to great emi nence as an architect under

P ope Nicholas V For him he built palaces at Or vieto
.

and Spoleto baths at Viterbo res tored the Vatican a n d

, , ,

commenced the basilica of St P e ter in Rome . .

H e almost built the town of P ienza for P ope P ius wh o

was born there and was desirous of beautifying his native
,
’
city By Bern ardo s plans it was enriched with several fine
.

Renaissance public buildings .

H e also erected the P iccolomin i N eru cci and Span nocchi , ,

palaces at Siena .

H is fame as a sculptor rests chiefly on his monumen ts to

1
In Fra An geli co, by M i ss Cath e i n e M a y Ph il l i m ore
‘ ’
r r
r k p ap ers
.

2 T h ese d ates of bi th are ta en by Sig M l anes i fr om th e tax .

of M atteo G m b r l li
a a e .
126 E AR LY I T AL I A N SC UL P T O R S .

to Be rnardo ; H e d ied in and was burie d in the

D u omo of Fl orence .

H is youngest brother A ntonio Rosse l li no eighteen years

, ,

h i s junior was by far the most famous scul ptor of the family
,

in him the finish and delicacy so characteristic of the art ists

of the age w as carried to its highest excell ence He is said .

to have been a pupil of D onatello but he fo r m e d a style of ,

h i s ow n by blending the pictorial manner of Ghiberti with

’
h i s master s realism and addi ng a tec h nical excell ence
,

w hich f or fineness an d delicacy of handli n g surpasses both .

Y et h e never achieved an y works w hich have the po w er and

r ugged force of D on atel l o
’
s or the n oble grace of Ghiberti
,
.

The church of San M i n iato has a charmi n g tomb to C ar

di n al J ac o po di P ortogallo sculptu r ed by him M ourn i n g .

genii weep at the head an d foot of th e you n g ca r dinal lyi n g

o n his sarcoph agus and t w o kneeli n g a n gels on e of wh o m
, ,

h ol ds the crown of virgi ni ty are be n eath them ,

A lovely .

M a d onn a and Chil d i n alt o ril iev o fo r m a roundel beneath

-

some too heavy looped curtains ab o ve the tomb

-
.

The cardinal died in 145 9 A ntoni o had the c ommission

.

for the tomb in 1 46 1 the pri ce fix ed being 42 5 gold fl or i us

, .

I t was finished in 146 6 .

When it was erected the Duk e of A m al fi wh o was on e of

, ,

th e P iccolomi ni fami l y admired it so much that i n 146 6 he

,

ordered a precisely similar monument i n m emory of his wife ,

the daughter of Ferdinand 1 k in g of Naples This is in . .

the church of Santa M aria di M onte at Naples and is almost

a re p li ca exce pt that a beautif ul relief of the Resurrection is
,

add e d Ant onio did n ot live to finish this and his heirs
.
,
&

were called o n to refund fifty fl ori ns of the price to pay other

’

arti s ts 1 The same church has another b as relief of the ~

.

1
Mil an es i, An n ot . V as an ,
v ol . iii p
. . 9 5, n o e. t
12 8 EAR LY I TAL I AN SC UL P T O R S .

N a ti vi tyby Antonio The influence of G hiberti is visible in

.

this truly pictorial sculpture the M adonna ado r es the Holy

C hil d beneath the lowly shed outside tw o shepherds gaze at
the guiding star ; while in the clouds above a lovely group
of angels with arms ent w ined dance and sing with ex q u i site

grace and spirit Cherubs heads and statuettes of saints and

.
’

evangelists surround and complete the del icately sculptured -

wor k .

’
A ntonio s best qualities may also be seen in the thr ee
reliefs which he contribute d to the pulpit in the Duomo of
P rato in 1473 They represent t wo scenes from the L ife of
.

Step h en and the As s ump ti on of th e Vi rg i n

, .

l h e Florentine gallery of sculpture contains three or four

’

of his works viz , .

1 A charmi ng circul ar r el ief of the M a d onn a a d ori ng th e

.

i nfan t Sa vi ou r
’
H ere agai n G h i b erti s style is suggested in
.
, ,

the perspective of the landscape background and the shep ,

herds playing their flutes i n the distance A beaut i f ul corni ce .

o f angels heads surrounds the composition

’
Ther e is a slight .

want of grace about the Ch ild the Vi rg i n has sweet placid ,

features the flesh is poli shed to an extreme deg r ee of softness .

2 A bust of M a tteo P a l m i er i signed

. opus Anteu il ,

G h am b erel l i whi ch is very lifelike The surface of

, .

the marble is in j ured by some centuries of exposure above the

door of the C asa P almieri at the Canto all e Rondi n e , near ,

Santa C roce where it was first p l aced

, .

3 A statue of the youthful St J oh n which once s tood on

. .
,

the door of the O pera di San G iovanni n ear the D uomo at ,

Florence .

E mpoli a small to w n in T uscany bo asts of a statue of St

, ,
.

Sebas ti a n which was executed by An tonio in 1 45 7 for the

,

Company of the Ann unciation of that town .

 C H AP T E R II .

THE D ELL A B O BB IA F M LY
A I .

U RIN G nea ly a centu ry the name Della Robbia shone

r

the an n als of sculpture or rather of the plasti c art

in , ,

for the especial branch of art w hich takes their name i s n ot

trul y sculpture but glazed terra cotta The legitimacy of the
,
.

Dell a Ro bb i as ar t or h ow far th e c ol o urin g of sculpture is

’
,

detrimental to i ts purity is still an open question Settin g

,
.

a ide the c o nsideration of c o lour L uca della Robbia the fi rst

s
, ,

an d grea te st o f h i s race w as a true artist as is sh o wn by hi s

, ,

early w orks in marble and the charmi ng grace and sweetness

,

of his enam elled M adonn as .

He w as b orn ab ou t 1400 i n the Via Sant E gidio Fl o r ’

,

ence He after wards bought a h ouse in Via Guelfa which

.
1
,

re m ained for some centuri es in his family Vasa r i makes .

much of h i s g ood educa tion saying He w as n ot only ta ught , ,

to read and w rite bu t even learned arithmetic

, A ppre n ticed
to a goldsmith in his boyi sh years he first lea rn ed to m odel ,

in wax but the n h i s spi r it gro w in g stronger ( erw ei u togl i

,
“

l u n i m o) he b ega n to try more ambiti ous w ork s i n bronze an d

’

marble B al d i n u cci says h e studi ed sculpture under Ghibe r ti

.
,

1
G aye ,
‘
Ca rt g i
e g o i ned i to, f vo l . i .
pp . 1 8 3 18 6
-
.
D A N C IN G B O Ys . Bas -
r li
f i n M a r bl e for th e
e e r ll r lr
O gan G a e y i n t h e D u om o o f F o en

A d) . 143 1 . By LUCA DELLA RO BB IA . In th e N a ti onal M useum, Fl or ence

.
 I NG
THE S ER S . BA S—
RE L I IN
EF M AR B LE F
A .D . 143 1
.
 THE D E LL A R OBB I A FA M I LY .

shows no trace of that master s influence Hi s first i m ’

.

p ortant work was an organ gall ery to face the on e sculptured

by Donatell o in the Duomo The commission was given .

i n 143 1 . He adorned the front of the gall e r y with the

most exquisite reliefs of choristers and singi n g m aidens , ,

so li felik e that one can see the acti on of the throat and not ,

onl y that but the soul of music i n their animated faces

,
.

Some are playing others danci n g and in eve r y gr oup is a

, ,

charming freedom of action g r ace of attitude and elega n ce

, ,

of flowi n g drapery that is not to be surpassed Th e se lovely .

relie fs are n ow in the large hall of the National M useum in

Florence— ( See Fr onti sp i ece) A ca st of the group is now in
.

the South Kensington M useum .

In 143 7 L uca underto ok to make five h as reliefs for the -

Campanile of Florence to compl e te the series of A rts and

Sciences begun by A ndrea P isano and in the foll ow i n g year
he began two altars for the Duomo on e to St P eter the other ,
.
,

1
to St P a ul
. The fi rst seems not to have been fin ished for
.
,

parts of it are in the National M useum A fter this date we .

find no more w orks in ma rble He gave up the s ca lp el l o for.

th e s tecch i n i and t ook to utili zing his clay m odels by a process

,

of i n v i tri ati on or e n amel which gave them colour and glaze

, ,

and rendered them so im pervious to atmospheric in jury

that they have proved more las ti n g than marble .

His gl aze was composed of lith a rge antimo n y and other , ,

minerals This n ew inventi on so to ok the fancy of the

.

wo r ld that orders came in from all parts e v en fr om Spain ,

and France and finding hi mself unable to fulfil th em all h e

,

too k into partnership two brothers O tta v ian o and Agosti n o di ,

D uccio .
2
P rob ab l v this A g o stino di D uccio is the on e kn own
1 R i cerch e I tal i an e ii 3 65
,
’
.

M il an es i An no t V asa ri
.

2
, .
,
’
v ol . 11 . pp . 177 8 , -
t
n o es.
 13 4 E AR LY IT AL I AN SC UL P T O R S .

to fame as having spoiled the marbl e from which M ichel

a n gelo afterwards made his David These tak ing the name .

of the firm were by Vasari mista k en for brothers of L uca .

JU NE .

O NE O F TE E T WE LV E M ON HS T Me d a lli on i n E nam e ll Terra

ed C otta,
hr m By LU A RO BB IA
.

p ai n t e d i n m on oc o e . C D EL LA .

I n th e So uth Ken s i ngton Mu s eum . .

It is true that L uca had brothers but Ser G iovanni was ,

n otary to the Si gnoria and Marco is not mentioned as a

,

scul pto r the lat ter was h o wever father to the mo t fam o us
.
,
s
 TE E MAD ONNA IN AD ORATI ON . B as r li
-
e e f by LUCA D E LLA B O EB IA
M r
, .

I n th e Convent o f Sa n a co, Fl or ence

.

trati on of a graceful relief of the M adonn a adori n g the infant

 THE D E LLA R O BB IA FA M I LY . 13 7

Saviour, wh ich is i n the C onvent of San M arc o and which ,

sho w s L uca i n his pu r est style In 1449 he ad or n ed th e a r ch .

of th e great d oor of San Domenic o o f U rbin o w ith a M a d on n a , ,

St D om i ni c and St P eter M a r tyr in r e li ef

.
,
The r e is als o
. .

a fine altar pi e ce in the ch urch of the O ss e r va n za n ea r Si ena

-

of w hich w e give an illustrati on It is a la rge squa r e r elief .

r epresenti n g th e Cor on a ti on of th e Vi rgi n Th e gradin o .

h as three v e ry fi n ely execu ted subj e cts f r om he r li fe .

The r e is a beautiful M a d onn a a nd A ngel s by L uca d ella

Robbia o v er the d oor O f the chu r ch of San P ie r o B u on con
s i gl i o,
in the Ol d m arket of Fl ore n ce A n d in the c h ap el .

of th e P azzi in Santa C ro ce are a number o f figur e s a n d

medall ions in glazed clay by his ha n d Two oth er beautifully .

adorn ed chapels are those of San J ac o p o at San M i n iato ,

Floren ce and the to mb of Ser Be n o zzo Fed eri gh i n ow i n th e

, ,

church of San Francesco di P a ola near Bell osguard o Flo r e n c e , .

He h ad the commission for this on M a r ch 2 145 4 but afte r , ,

a long dispute ab out the price he w as o n ly paid Au g 6 ,

.
,

145 9 A ,
ndr e a dei C a v alca n ti bei n g call e d in t o value i t 1 .

L uca mad e his w ill in 1471 Feb 19 leav in g a legacy to his , .

,

niece Checca a w ido w an d everythi n g else to his nephe w s

, , ,

A ndr ea an d Simo n e ; A n d r ea to have all that pe r tai n ed to

h i s art and Simone his o ther possessi on s
,
2
He d i e d on Feb . .

2 2 1 48 2 and w as b uried in the church of San P ietro

, ,

M aggior e Fl orence , .

quite c omp e tent to c ontinue his uncl e s w o r k

An drea w as
’
,

and to keep up the fame of the fam i ly L ike L u ca s his .

o
’

r eliefs an d statues are fou n d in all parts O f Italy He .

did many beautiful works at the church O f Santa M aria d elle

1 Mi l an es i ,
‘
Ann ot . V riasa ,
’
v ol . II. p . 176, no e.t
3
G aye, Cart eggi o, i
‘ ’
. 185 .
 13 8 E AR LY ITA L I A N SC U P O L T RS .

G razie and oth er churches near A rezzo

, . The convent of th e
Vernia has also some fine specimens . A ndrea died full o f

MAD ONNA AN D I
C H LD .
T e rr a C o tta E n am e l ,
by LUCA A
D E LL R o nn l A .

In the M usée d e Cl ung , P ar i s .

 TION
C OR ONA O F THE VI G I N
R . Bas -
r li
e e f by a foll ower of LU CA D E LL A R0
A l ta r p i ece i n the Ch u
-
rh
c of t h e Osser va nz a , n ea r Si ena
 THE D E LL A R O BB I A FAM I LY . 141

The large portal of the cathedral of P l StOJa Is also ad orned .

w it h a circular reli e f O f the M a d on na a nd Ch i l d surrounded

by a n gels an d seraphs This has lately been authentica ted .

as the work of A n dr ea della Robbia who was paid fifty ,

ducats of g old fo r it in But the most be autiful

of the Della Rob b ia works is the f r ie z e which runs
across the w hole fr ont of the hospital del Ceppo at ”

P i s toj a It is about four feet in height an d represents in a

.
,

series of full length figu r es the seven w orks of m er cy It

-

, .

h as bee n attribu ted to A ndrea della Robbia but he must ,

ha ve been m ore th an eighty years Ol d for the l oggia was n ot ,

b uilt till 15 14 un der the g o vernmen t of M esser Le onard o di

,

Gi ovanni B uon afe and the frie ze w as finished eleven years

,

afterw ard s The b ooks Of the hospi tal contain an entry of

.

pa ymen ts made in 15 2 4 to Giovan n i della R obbia 2 A ndrea s ,

’

son so he w as presumably the author of thi s bea utiful f r ieze

, .

P isa Siena P erugia Fojano and other towns possess terra

, , , ,

c otta reliefs an d statues ; indeed they are to be found in all

parts of Italy but the n umber really to be attributed to Luca
o r A ndrea is comparatively small The style has bee n .

imita ted by infe r io r a r tists so that anything like an authenti c ,

list of the De l la Robbia sculptures would be very diffi cult to

O btain .

In the South Kensi n gt on M useum there are fifty examples

of the wo r ks of the Della Robbia fami ly O n e imp ortant .

specimen a M edal l i o n bearing the arms of K i n g Ren e O f

,

A n j ou is eleven feet in diameter

,
A set of t welve ci r c ular .

medallions ( see engr a vi ng on p typical of the m onths .

,

executed i n m on ochrome are a l so O f much inte r es t , .

1
G u al a n d i , ‘
Me m o ri d i B ll
e e e A r tI, se r i vi
s . p . 3 3 .

t V ri p
’
Ann o vol ii;
‘
2
ll l i l a n e s i , 198
'

. asa , . . .
 A ND I
CH L D . E n am e ll ed Te rr a By AN D RE A
DE LL A RO EB IA . In th e South Kensi ng to n Mus eu m
. .
 L
E AR Y ITA IAN L SC UL P TO RS .

n ear P rato where B e n edetto had a villa an d podere which

, ,

was the j oin t work of the thre e brothers sig n ed with their ,

n ames an d dated 148 0 it is n ow removed to the i n terior

,

of the cathedral at P rato O ver the altar of the shri n e is a

.

M ado n n a an d C hild of te rra cotta the dossal is a Piet a i n

relief i n white m arble on a grou n d of gree n P rato marble
, ,
.

Th e relief shows a more crude an d hard style tha n Be n edetto s

’

works but is n ot devoid of feeli n g an d sen time n t It i s

,
.

believed to be by G iulian o an d G iovan n i while B e n edetto ,

did the s tatuette Two a n gels which surmoun ted the taber
.
~

n a cl e are destroyed .

B e n edetto w h o was ten years you n ger than G iulian o

, ,

studied the art of zu ta rs i a tura u n der him but his artistic

'

t alen t bei n g st r o n ger he soon surpassed his b rother an d has

, ,

left so m e beautiful specimen s of this woode n mo saic He .

was discouraged as to the durabil ity of this art because , ,

havi n g taken tw o elaborately i n laid caskets to C or vi n u s Ki n g ,

o f Hun gary he fou n d on displayi n g them to his pat r o n that

,

the sea w ater had warped an d i nj ured his work O vercome

-
.

with chagri n he resolved to give his atten tion to a less perish

,

able art an d soo n became more famous as a scul ptor than as an

,

Thus it happe n s that his career begi n s late n o

‘ ’

z u ta r s za tor e .

wo r k by him is recorded before 1474 when the bust of P i etr o ,

M al l i m which is n ow i n the B argello was executed— except

’

, ,

the deco r atio n s i n the Sala G r an de an d Sala dell Udie n za i n ’

th e P al azzo V ecchio which he u n dertook i n 1 473 i n co m pa n y

, ,

with hi s b r other G iulian o Th e beautiful door i n the Sala .

dell Udie n za which Be n edetto decorated with ma rble scul p

’
,

t u res an d G i u li an o with i n laid wood was n ot fi n ished till ,

148 1 . Th e statuette of St Joh n th e B ap ti s t which o n ce .

su r mou n te d it is n ow i n the Bargel lo .

In 149 0 the Flore n tin es commissio n ed him to mak e th e

1 46 EARLY ITAL IA N s o ULPTO RS .

busts of G i otto, an d of Antoni o Sgua r cza l up z a famous

’ ’

musician an d org an ist of the D uomo these heads are still

i n scul ptured n iches i n the Floren tin e cathedral .

About thi s time or earli er Fil ippo Strozzi employed him

, ,

to scul pture a bust of h i mself whi ch is n ow i n the L ouvre

, ,

an d commi ssion ed h i m to prepare his tomb i n the church of

San ta M aria Novella When F ili ppo Strozzi di ed in 149 1,
.

the sepulchre was already adva n ced , an d he lef t a clause i n h is

wil l tha t it was to be fin ished withi n two years of his death .

Th e sar cophagus is adorn ed with a bas reli ef of two a n gel s -

holdin g a tablet Above this is a cir cular relief of the

.

M a d on na a n d Ch i l d Both the reliefs an d the an gels whi ch

.

s upport it ar e exqui sitely carved a n d del ica te ly moulded the ,

flesh havi n g an ex tr eme softn ess Thi s is worthy to be .

considered on e of Ben edetto s best works ’

.

Perkin s places Be n edetto s visit to Naples i n 149 0 the

1 ’

,
’
date of hi s brother s death i n that city but if he wen t there ,

on that occas io n ,
he could n ot h ave remain ed lo n g e n ough
to un dertake an y great works for at that time from 149 0 ,

to 149 3 he had on ha n d the Strozz i tomb the busts for the ,

D uomo a crucifix of wood for the high altar of the D uomo

, ,

w hi ch was coloured by L ore n zo di Credi besides the import ,

an t commissio n s at Sa n G emig n a n o the alta r of St Ba rtolo , .

,

an d the chapel of San ta F in a as well as the tomb of San ta

,

Savi n a at F aenz a
. Th e chr on ology gi ve n by Si g M ilan esi 2 .
,

dates h i s work s for A lfon so at N aples i n 149 5 while the relief ,

of the An nu n ci a ti on ordered for the m on astery of M on t

,
’

O l iveto by the C oun t of Terra Nuova , on which Perkin s

,

ba ses h i s opi nion Was sculptured i n Ben edetto s own stu dio at
,
’

F loren ce in 148 9 as is proved by the date of a letter from th e

,

1 Tu s can Sc u l pt ors , i viii

’
v ol ch
. . . .
p 23 0
. .

An n ot Vas ar i , iii
’
3 v ol 3 3 7 n ot e
. . .
p . .
MA DO N N A IN G L O RY . B y B E N E D E ITO
’ ‘
DA MA JA N O In ch ap el
.
f
o

Sa nta Fi na , Sa n G e mi gn a no . A D 1490 9 3
. .
-
.
 THE HAJ AN I . 149

great love of pi ctori al sc ulpture ; they are sce n es from the

life of St Fr a nci s o f most ca r eful executio n an d great
.
, ,

e ff ect especially i n the D ea th of the Sai n t where the per

, ,

s p ec ti v e of the n ave of a church is give n with great truth .

Hi s plan caused much deliberation be fore it was accepted as ,

he decided to ca rr y his s ta i rcase th r ough on e of the col um n s ,

which he actual ly achieved without i nj u ry to th e archi tecture .

B e n edetto died M ay 2 4 149 7 an d was i n terr ed i n San

, ,

Loren zo F lore n ce
, . He left his mo n ey to the B i gal l o or ,

Fou n dl i n g Hospital of Flore n ce an d the captain s of the

,

co m pan y spen t it i n buildi n g an oratory at the Hospital of

San B iagio n ear S Pie r o a M o n ticel l i
. He also left to the
.

B i gal l o t wo statues of St Sebas ti a n an d the M a d onn a

.
,

which were af te r w ards ceded to the M isericordia in whose ,

church they still re mai n .

“
Besides the M aj an i there was an other fa m ily th e Del ,

Tasso i n Flore n ce famous as wood ca rv ers an d i n ta rs i a tor i ;

,
-

’
they made the bea u tiful carved ceili n g i n the Sale dell .

O riuolo and Sala del l Udien za i n the P alazzo V e c chio

’

Floren ce ; Th e family con sisted of C hime n ti or C leme n ti th e ,

father an d his two so n s Li o n ard i an d Za n obi appre n tices

, , ,

of Be n ed etto da M aj a n o besides Cer vagi o an d D ome n ico

, ,

b r others an d assista n ts of C leme n ti .

Several of thei r w orks i n mar b le an d i n w ood are to be

see n i n the church an d co n ve n ts of San t A mbrogio an d San ’

Salvi in F loren ce ; i n the refectory of San P ietro at P e rugia ,

as well as the choir of the D uomo i n th a t city which D ome ,

n ico d el Tasso fi n ished j ust after G iul ian o da M aj an o s

’

d eath. Dome n ico had three so n s all i n ta r s ia tor i one of ,

whom made the Carro della Z ecca an d several statues & c ,

, , .

for th e decoratio n of the city on Lee X s t r iumphal e n try .

’
.
 P ART III .

THE A C H ITE C T SC U PTO

R -
L RS O F THE
R E NA ISSA N CE .

C H AP TE R I .

U
G I LIA NO AN D A N TO N O
I DA SAN L O
GA L .

C UL P TUR E has always been more less the ha n dmaid

or

o f arc h itecture but i n traci ng the history of the t wo

,

arts there appear to have bee n al tern ate seaso n s of special

u n ion an d disj un ctio n betwee n them .

In the early times of church b uildi n g the scul ptor was

a decorat i ve m ason ; he n ot o nl y placed his sto n es but he ,

m ade them eloque n t by carvi n g o n his d oo r an d fa c ade the

scriptural truths whic h were taught withi n the buildi n g .

Thus all the Pisa n i were archi tects and the G othic bu i lders
,

we r e also scul ptors .

In the time of G hiberti an d D o n atello the two arts becam e

s eparated ; sculpt u re was n o lo n ger decoration i n corporated
15 2 EA R LY ITAL I AN SC UL P T RS O .

brothers i n 148 2 i s i n a chapel behi n d the choir i n the

,

church o f the SS A n n u nz iata i n F lore n ce ; a seco n d carved

.
,

by A n to n io alo n e is i n the vest i bule o f the cloister of the

,

same ch urch havi n g bee n removed thither from San J acop o

,

tra F ossi whe n that church was destroyed A third do n e

’
,
.
,

by A n to n io for the compa n y of the Scalzo i n 15 14 is un for . ,

G iulia n o s fame as a sculptor rests chiefly on

’
tu n atel y lost .

the fi ne chim n ey piece which he carved for the Palazzo-

G o n di an d which at the time was co n sidered the fi n est

.
,

w ork of the k i n d .

Th e brothers were associated i n the con structio n of ma n y

‘

great works ; they built fort r esses for the M ed i ci the Sfo rza ,

o f M ila n an d for Popes A lexa n der V I an d C leme n t V IL

,
.
,

besides m an y palaces i n Rome an d F lore n ce on Brama n t e s ’

death G iulia n o was ofl cr ed the post of architect at St

. .

Pete r s but his faili n g health caused him to refuse the o n e r ous
’
,

post Th e n ame San G allo was given to them from a co n ve n t

.

they built for th e m o n ks of San G allo n ea r the walls of

'

F lore n ce G iulia n o was i n cli n ed to murmur that he was

.

k n own more by the sobriquet tha n by his famil y n ame but ,

Lore n zo de M edici co n soled h i m by sayi n g “

’
It was better ,

to have fou n ded a n a m e by his o wn ge n ius tha n to take ,

’

”
on e fro m others G iul i an o died on Sept 2 0 i n 15 16
. .
,

leavi n g a s on Fra n cesco already famous as a sculptor , .

An ton io outlived him m an y year his death n ot t ak i n g p l ace s

,

till 15 3 4 O n e or t wo wo rks of merit remai n to us from the

.

han d of G iulian o s s on Fra n cesco A M a d onn a a nd Ch i l d

’
.

are i n the church of O r San M ichele ; an d the fi ne tomb ,

o f the year 15 46 of A ngel o M arz i M edi ci ,Bishop o f A ssisi , ,

stan ds n ear the Tribu n e of the Ann u n ziata Church i n Flo re n ce .

F ran cesco sculptured also the tomb o f P i er o d e M ed i ci at ’

M o n te C ass i n o fi ni shed after Piero s death i n 15 48

’
,
Pope .
 G I UL I AN O AN D AN T O N I O D A SAN G ALL O . 15 3

Clemen t V II . commission ed hi m to make it at the price of

4000 ducats .

Th e An ton io da San G allo, called il

giovan e who rose ,

to su ch emin en ce as an architect was a n ephew of G iulia n o

,

an d An to n io an d receiv ed his trai n i n g u n der them

, He was .

the s on of their sister Smeralda who ma r ried B ar tolommeo

,

l
di An tonio d i Cordi ani He is disti n guished as An to n io
.

San G all o i t gi ovane an d was born in 148 5

,
He also had a
.

brother Battista an ar chitect ,

.

1
Mos t rs a fter Vasari h av e given th e nam e o f Sm eral d s
au th o a
’

h u sban d as An dr ea Pi ccon i b u t from d oc um en ts l atel y di sc ov ered i t i s

,

foun d to h av e been Bartol om m eo di Cordi an i . i nf or mati on

M i l a nesi .
 C H AP TE R II .

A N DR AE A N D JA C OPO SA N O NO
S VI .

An drea Sa n sovi n o
the artistic faculty was most
stro ngly developed ; i n fact it was almost spon tan eous ,

for he used to amuse himse l f by modelli n g i n clay or soft

mould the sheep whi ch he was set to guard whe n a b oy .

V asari says his father was very poor but it appears from ,

a docume n t dated Au g 4 15 08 that N i ccol o di Domen ico

.
, ,

Con tu cci or M ucci whe n he died left his two so n s

, , ,

An drea an d Piero a house i n M o n te Sa n sovin o an d several

, ,

pieces of lan d To on e who kn ows the mode of lif e i n the

.

moun tain ous an d cou n t r y districts the two assertio n s ar e

,

quite reco n cilable it bei n g usual for each fa m ily to possess

,

its own house an d small holdi n gs of chestn ut fores ts or arable

lan d which its members work themselves E very family has
, .

i ts flock of sheep to supply wool for the weavi n g of win ter

ar m en ts an d these are co n fided to the care of the boys or girls
g ,

between the ages of n i n e an d thirteen So that thou gh An drea .

was a li ttle herdsman it is n o proof of extreme p overty i n

,

his house . Simon e V espucci was at this time se n t from

‘
Floren ce as p od es tat of the little mou n tai n town an d he ,

acte d the part which C imabue fu lfilled to the youthful G iot to ,

by takin g back the b oy with h i m to F loren ce that he migh t ,

15 6 EAR L Y IT AL I AN SC UL PTO RS .

for G en oa ,the Floren ti n e work s were left imperfect They .

remain ed i n the O pera del Duomo for n early a ce n tu ry when ,

they were fi n ished by V i n ce n zo Dan ti A n drea had so far .

blocked them ou t that h e had b ee n paid 5 0 fl or i n s of the

price on Jan 3 1 15 05 Th e latte r years of his life were
.
,
.

divided betwee n wo r ks i n Rome for Pope Jul i us II an d .

Fr o m t h e TO M B or C A R D IN A L A SC AN I O Sr o m .

B y A N D R FA SA N SO V IN O , AD 15 05 .

I n Sa n ta M a r i a d el P op ol o, Rom e .

th e erection of the Shri n e for the Holy House at L oreto ,

whi c h was a commiss i on from Pope Leo X His tombs .

o f the C ardin als A sca n io Sforza an d G irolamo B a sso dell a

Rovers i n the church of San ta M aria del Popolo are both very
beautiful but his capo d opera i s a grou p represen ti n g the
,
’
 N
A D R EA AN D J AC O P O SAN SO V IN O . 15 7

Vi rgi n a nd
’
St An na i n San t Agostin o
. at Rome whi ch is a ,

most g raceful an d charmi n g co n ception .

Though the design for the marble shri n e of Loreto is

San sovi n o s very few of the sculptures which actually ado r n
’

it we r e by hi s han d M an y of the artists of the 16th ce n tu ry

.

w o r ked there i n cludi n g B an di n elli F r an c esco da San G allo

, , ,

Tr ibolo Lombardo an d othe r s who at di ffere n t times

, , ,

fi n ished reliefs begun by San sovi n o or added others of their

o w n design Th e on ly part which is en tirely the work of
.

An d r ea is the A nn u nci a ti on i n high relief which he h as ,

t r eated with peculi ar g race an d extremely d eli cate fi n ish .

O n e of the fi gu res of the P rophets was also exec u ted by

A n drea himself D uri n g the years i n w hich Sa n sovin o was
.

e m ployed at Loreto he al w ays retired to his n ative tow n ,

M o n te San sovi n o for fo u r mon ths repose He r e h e n ot ’ “

,
.

o n ly cultivate d the bits of lan d his father h ad has h im but '

added to them an d replaced the family homestead by a

,

commodio u s house of his ow n architecture He died from .

cold take n i n superin te n din g some buildi n g operatio n s here

i n 15 2 9 In pe rson he was small but we l l formed his face
.
,

an d expressio n pleasin g he h ad an i m pedimen t i n his speech ,

but was ve ry hi ghly educate d an d a m an of cul tivated tastes .

Several of hi s scholars became famous amo n g whom were ,

G irolamo L ombardo w h o assisted him at Loreto Le 0n ardo,

del Tasso Domen ico del M o nt e San sovi n o an d Titia n s

, ,
’

frien d Js copo Tatti to whom descen ded hi s n ame San sovin o

, ,

an d a double po rtion of hi s fame .

J A GO P O the son of A n to n io an d Fra n cesc a Tatti (b o rn

,

148 6 l d ed
i
,
had n early a cen tury of artistic li fe ; he
1
Th e “
li b ro d e b att ezzati J
h as th e en tr y of ac opo s bap ti sm on
’

J ul y 3 , 1486 . In 1 48 7 h i s fath er s tax paper d es cri bes hi m as one

’
-
~
15 8 EAR L Y ITALIAN SC ULPTO RS .

saw the c ulmi n ation of the

'

Ren aissan ce movemen t w as ,

a fr i end of the leadi n g mi n ds

i n it and beheld the first

,

steps of the declin e i n h i s

ol d age .

His proclivities for ar t

were so stro n g that he shared
the fate o f man y a youthful
gen ius ; he got i n to d i sgrace
at sch ool an d stro n gly r e
,
’
sisted his father s authority
by ref us i n g to be appren ticed
to a trade : wi n n i n g h i s
way at len gth he e n tered
A n drea San sovin o s studio
’

where h e soon became like

a son to his master Thus .

his first art trai n i n g was i n

scul pture ; but when as a
youn g man b e acco mpan ied
G iul ian o da San G all o to
Rome the stron gest in terest
,

w as a w aken ed i n the revival

of Roman architecture whic h ,

was occupyi n g all mi n ds at

the time .

Just as Raphael M ichel ,

an gelo an d every other

,

artist became a builder on Sr JOHN THE BAP TIST

J ACO P O SANSOVI NO A D 155 4
. .

By
the Sl i e Of the Old temples , .

In Sa nta M ar i a de P r ur i , Veni ce
’
.

. .

an d pal aces of the C aesars so ,

 16 0 EAR L Y IT AL IAN SC UL PTO R S.

pai n ter s l ife we have man y a picture of th etwo grey haired

’
-

&
f r ien ds talki n g i n the fr esh garden on the ban ks of the
.
.
.

L agoo n , or shari n g social meals at whic h Titian s daughter ,

’
,

the beauti ful L avi n ia mi n istere d to them

, . .

O f San sovi n o s sculptural works i n V en ice the M adonna

’

o ver the door o f San M arco is perhaps the most pleasi n g .

Th e bron ze reliefs i n the doors of the sacristy co n sisti n g of,

sce n es fr om the life of C hrist are ve r y artistic hn d forcible

, .

A ll his architecture had a pecu l iarly sculpturesque effect .

Th e surface was so broke n by f r iezes e n tablatures an d other

, ,
’
adorn men ts that on e of San sovi n o s bu i ldi ngs gives the idea
,

of a si n gle sculptured sto n e .

B esides Tribolo Bartolommeo A mm an n ati an d G irolamo of

,

F erra ra were scholars whose career reflected credit o n h i s

tea chi ng.
 C H AP TE R III .

B E N E DE TTO DA ROVEZ Z A N O .

E N E DE TTO D A ROV E Z Z AN O , an other of the archi

tect s c ulptors was s on of B ar t olo m m eo di Ricci di
-

G razi n i ( bo r n 1474— died Th e family was o r i gi n ally

f r om a village n ear P i s toja but Be n ede tto settled i n Ro v ez
zan o about 15 05 ha v i n g bought a house an d la n d there It
,
.

is believed that B e n edetto h ad his trai ni n g u n der M ichel

’
a n gelo s frie n d the sculptor D o n ato B e n ti as he was his
, ,

assista nt i n executi n g the fi n s ma rble gall ery for the orga n

loft i n San Stefa n o at G e n oa i n 149 9 an d also i n sc ulpturi n g ,

a tomb at the commiss i o n of the Ki n g of Fra nce i n 15 02 .

Th e disti n guishi n g ma rks of Rovezza n o s sculptu re are

’

classic grace an d ext reme fi n ish

,
His ma rbles a r e so .

polished that the s urface is soft as sati n This is a quali ty

, .

of the Flore n ti n e school of the seco n d half of the fifte e n th

cen tu ry which they shared w i th the an cie n t G ree k s P raxi .

te les passed his statues to N i ci as for h i m to give t hem the

ci r cum l i ti o before he co n sidered them fin ished It is b elieved .

that this ci r cu m l i ti o was a polishin g of the su r face of the

marble with a preparatio n of wax Th e G reek statues sho w .

decided sign s of some delicate pr oce ss of po l ishi n g an d the ,

same soft lustre is eviden t on the works of Mi n e of F i es ol e ,

E IS
. . . M
16 2 E A R LY ITA L I AN SC UL P TO RS .

th e M aj an i ,
D esiderio of Settig n a n o ,
an d Rov ez zan o . Th e
It alian s design ate it as m or bi d ezz a M uch of Ro vez zan o s '
’
.

sculpture took an architectu r al form He sculp tu r ed beauti .

ful po r tals full of graceful foliage for the house of O ddo

, ,

A l tov i ti an d charmi n g f r iezes capitals an d a sculptured

, , ,

ch i m n ey piece for P ier Fran cesco B orgh er in i A s a tomb

-
.

mak er Rovezz an o was very successful His mo n ume n t to

,
.

P i er o Sod er i n i i n the church of the C armi n e at F lo r e n ce ,

a n d the tomb of Od d o A l tovi ti i n the same church are very ,

good specimen s of his style .

His masterpiece — the tomb an d shri n e of St G i o va n n i .

G ua l ber to a sain t of the V al l om b ros i an order which he

, ,

sculptured i n 15 06 for the church of Sa n ta Tri n it a Floren ce ,

w as u n fortu n ately destroyed by the soldie r s i n the tim e of

the siege of Floren ce Several of the a l ti r i l i evi much
.
,

i n j ured an d wan ti n g almost all the h ead s of the fi gu r es are ,

p r eserved i n the Natio n al M useum together with some o f ,

the friezes an d brackets from the shri n e Th e reliefs whi ch .

,

are sce n es from the life of the sai n t show Rov ezzan o s ,
’

richn ess of compositio n g raceful drap er y an d high fi n ish

, , .

Rov ezzan o spe n t five yea r s of his later life i n En gla n d ,

w h ither he wen t i n 15 2 4 to sculpt u r e the mon ume n t of

C a r d i n a l l Vol s ey But the C a r di n al falli n g in to disg ra c e
.
,

the work was discon ti n ued Th e bro n ze parts were fused by

.

order of P arliame n t i n 1646 an d the marble sarCOph agus ,

ultimately served for Lord N elso n s mo n umen t i n St Paul s ’

.
’
.

In 1 5 5 2 Rov ezzan o ol d an d bl in d reti r ed to the co n ve n t

, , ,

o f V alla m brosa whe r e he made a p a c t with the mo n ks to

, ,

pay do w n 100 gold ducats an d receive board an d lodgi n g for

the rem a i n der of his life Th e mon k s mad e a good ba rgai n
.
,

fo r he died i n th e sa m e year l
.

1 M il an i A n n o t V asari v ol iv p 5 3 6 n ote
es
‘ ’
.
, , . . .
, .
1 64 E AR LY ITAL I AN SC UL PT RS O .

S imo n e was acti

,
n g as P odest a 1 of
Caprese an d Chiusi Th e .

astrologers p r ed icted a g r eat future for the baby as M e r cu r y , ,

V e n u s an d J u pite r we r e i n co nj u n ctio n u n der a be n ig n aspe c t

, ,

i n dicati n g ge n ius i n those a r ts whi c h a p peal to the se n ses .

Th e ye ar of governorshi p havi n g expi r ed the family ret u rn ed ,

to Flore n ce the child was se n t to Settig n a n o to be n u rsed ;

,

an d the first sce n es he w ould rememb er were the yards o f the

sto n e cutters as his nurse s h u sban d followed that busi n ess

-

,
’
.

In d u e time he we n t to the s c hool of Fra n cesco d Urbi n o but

’
,

he liked drawin g so much better tha n letters that he w as ,

often reproved for idle n ess .

O n e o f his early f r ie n ds was Fr an cesco G ran acci pupil of ,

G hirla n d aj o who le n t him d esig n s to copy an d s upplied h i m

, ,

w it h pe n cils an d paper O ne of these desig n s was a p r i n t

.

of St A n to n y beate n by devils w hich he copied i n pe n cil

.
,
.

O n ce he had a fi sh to copy an d n ot con te n t with studyi n ,

g

the dra w i n g he betook himself to the fi sh ma rk et to st udy -

the colo u ri n g an d form of the real fish .

A l l these delights of the b oy p r oved very d istaste ful to his

fami l y whose ideas we re that p ai n ti n g was n ot dig n i fied as a
,

p r o fessio n b ut the m i n d w hich i n after yea r s dom i n ated eve n

P opes w as at this time stro n g e n ough to combat family pre
,

j udi c es Th e fact remai n s that he was articled as an app r en

.

t ice to Dome n ico G hirlan daj o for three yea r s dati n g from ,

A p r i l l s t 1 48 8 his sala r y to be six fl ori n s the fi rst year

, , ,

eight the seco n d an d ten the third Before the three yea r s
, .

were over the pupil had distan ced the master an d da r ed to ,

correct on e of his desig n s an d it seems the co n t ract w as

,

broke n by mutual co n se n t .

1
Th e P e d esta of th e Itali an Repub lics was an an nual o ffic e ; th e
l

ers n ch os en was a l ways a ci t iz en o f a di s ta n t ci ty an d on e wh o h a d

p o ,

n o relat ives i n t h e p l ac e h e was c a ll ed o n t o go vern .

 M IC H E L AN E L O G B U N ARR TIO O . 16 5

About this time the Medici G arde n i n V i a Larga w a s

ope n ed to the publi c use as an art school L o r e n zo de Medici ,
’

’
placin g his a n tiques an d D on atel l o s desi gn s the r e for
’
the use of you n g ar tists with D on atel l o s p u pil n ow ol d , ,

B e r toldo as a guardia n : Th e a n tiqu e statues turn ed M ichel

,

a n gelo from his in te n tion ed caree r of pai n ti n g an d m ade a

sculptor o f him his fi rst e ffo r t bei n g the head of a Fa un
,
.

He was so quick i n r e m edyi n g t h e e rror Lo r e n zo de M edici ’

po in ted out i n havi n g left i n all the teeth that Lo re n z o

, ,

pe r cei v ed his quick n ess of tale n t a nd se n di n g for Ludovico , ,

o ffered to t ake cha rge of the boy s a r tistic edu c ation So

’

M ichela n gelo n ow fifteen yea r s o f age w e n t to li v e at the

, ,

M edici P alace an d spe n t his time bet w ee n st u dy i n the

,

g a r de n an d i n the Bran cacci C hapel at the C a r m i n e whe r e , ,

like a boy he someti m es got i n to fights with othe r s an d

, ,

w he r e it is said he h ad h i s n ose broke n by a blo w f r om the

b u rly Torr i gia n o In the palace also he got h i s classical
.

t rai n i ng by association with P oli tia n an d others of the P la to

Cl ub an d was i n spired to attempt his first relief the B a ttl e
, ,

f
o Her cul es a nd th e Cen tuur s .
1

In 149 2 Lo r e n zo died an d M i c hela n gel o retu r n ed to h i s

,

fathe r s ho use he r e his fi rst wo rk w as a Her cu l es abo u t 75

’
w ,
2
,

feet high W hen Pie r o de M edici was exiled o ur sculpto r

.
’

, ,

who was the n i n his house fled to B olog n a whe r e h e made t w o , ,

stat u ettes St P etr on i o an d an A ngel for the ch u rc h of St

,
.
, .

P et ro n io w hich g r eatly exci t ed the j ealousy of n ati v e a r tists

, .

O n h i s retu rn home n ext year he s c u lpt ured the Sl eep i ng ,

St Jel m an d th e Cup i d w hich was bu r ied an d the n sold to

.
, ,

C a rdi n al S G io r gio as an a n tique

. Th e fa m e o f this b r o ught .

his fi rst call to Ro m e w he r e he sculptured th e Cup i d an d the

,

1
N o w i n t h e B uon arroti all e r , Fl ore n c e
y G .

2
Sen t to Fran c e i n 15 3 0, b y Bat t is t a d ell a Pa ll a ,
for Fran ci s I .
1 66 . E AR L Y ITAL IAN SC UL P T RS O .

‘
1
for J acop o G alli an d the P i ctet for Ca r di n al Rovan o
B a cch us , ,

which fo r m s an altar pi e ce i n the ch apel of S M aria della

-
.

Febbre i n St P eter s This group w as copied several ti m e s

.
’
.

by co n temporary artists an d M ichela n gelo himsel f cast it

,

t w ice i n b r o n ze on e copy is possess ed by the St r ozzi family ,

the other for w hich he recei v ed 100 ducats w as se n t to

, ,

Fla n de r s Th e Fi el d was criticised by some as u n t rue to

.

n ature the V i r i n bei n g

, g rep r es en ted too
y o u thful for t h e
'

m otherhood of the m an Ch r ist ; but M ichela n gelo asserted

that the youth was i n te n ded by him to sho w the t r uth that
purity i n woma nhood preserves its c hildlik e beauty eve n i n to
middle age M ichela n ge l o was always willi n g to sacrifice
.

a n ythi n g to exp r ess a t r uth a n d i n this way he of te n tra n s

,

g ress e d the class ical ca n o n s o f a r t Th e B a cch us spo k e n o f

.

n n n —
above is a st r o g sta ce of this here beauty si m plicity
i , , ,

a n d n obility a r e sacrificed to exp r ess d r u n ke n n ess — a fleeti n g

loweri n g of n ature In the D a vi d he afterwards set at

.

defia n ce th e G reek law th at o n ly the perfect de v elopme n t

,

o f form s h ould be re n dered eter n al i n m a r ble by maki n g ,

the statue of an u n de v eloped youth without the pe r fect ,

rou n d n ess o f chil d hood or t h e perfe ct form of the m an .

A b oy lo n g l i ni b ed large ha n ded an d still i n a s tate o f

, , ,

d evelopme n t — an i n complete fo r m i n fac t It was the dari n g .

act of a sculptor w h o feels h imself a m aster In an y other .

b an d s the expe r ime n t would probably ha v e failed .

He did n o t re m ai n lo n g i n Rom e at this time for the ,

Republic o f Flore n ce had settled i tself do wn on a n ew basis ,

u n der P ie r Sod eri n i as perpetual G o n falo n iere an d as h e w as ,

a patro n of the a rts there would su r el y b e employme n t fo r

,

the fi rs t scul ptor of h i s age i n his n ative city an d truly his

a n t i ci p tio n s were w ell fo u n ded
. A great block of m arble
.

N o w i n t h e Ufii z i G a ll ery F l oren c e

, .
 1 68 E ARL Y ITAL I AN SC UL P T RS O .

pou n ds m ade a slo w an d laborious progress through

,

the city bei n g fi n ally placed at the gate of the Sig n o ri a

,

( alazzo V ecchio ) on the 18 th of M ay where for ce n t u ries it

P ,

has bee n a k i n d o f hous ehold god to the Flore n ti n es It has .

o f la te years bee n removed to the B elle A r ti where a fi n e

,

tribun e has bee n built fo r its p reservatio n an d whe r e is also ,

a fi n e collectio n in casts of all M ichela n gelo s sculp ture s ’

.

Th e famous competitio n bet ween Leo n ardo da V i n ci a n d

M ichelan gelo bega n about this time an d resulted i n the ri v al ,

cartoo n s bei n g placed i n the hall o f the P alazz o V ecchio ,

where they became a school of art In which scores of you n ge r ,

a rtists studied .

In about 15 05 the sculptor received a call to Rome : the

Pope Julius II ( Della Re vere) wished to build himself a
.

t omb w hic h should be the gran de s t mo n u m e n t of ar t o f h i s

time . M ichela n gelo dre w a design which if it had be en ,

executed wo ul d have su rpas sed everythi n g It w as a mauso

,
.

leum to be orn ame n ted w ith bro n ze re l iefs an d fo r ty statu es

, ,

so m e of the m colossal There n ot bei n g a site worthy of i t

.

i n St P eter s the P ope determi n ed to rebuild the w hole

’
.
,

chu r ch an d seve ral architects we r e desired to make pla n s

, .

M ichela n gelo was se n t to C arrara to fi n d suitable marbles ,

an d was eight mo n ths selecti n g the fi n est blocks Whe n he .

return ed to Rome Braman te the architect had i n flue n ced th e

,

P ope an d the doors of the V atica n were closed i n his fa c e o n

, ,

w hi c h the i n depe n de n t sculptor we n t o ff to Flore n ce sayi n g , ,

“
If his Holi n e s s requires me i n future he can seek me
”
elsewhere tha n i n Rome It required a great deal of self
.

humiliatio n o n the pa r t of th e Pope an d of d iplomacy on ,

that of the G o n falo n iere of Flore n ce who w as afraid of ,

o ffe n d i n g the Pope to i n duce M ichela n gelo to rej oi n his

,

Holi n ess whe n he was at Bolog na .

 M IC H E L AN E L O G O
B U N A RR TI O . 16 0

Th e meeti n g passed off well the P ope gave his blessi n g

, ,

an d also an order for a b r o n ze statue o f himsel f which was

,

fo r so m e ti m e on the fa cade o f St P et r o n ius but w as melted

.
,

do w n to m ak e a can n o n i n 15 11 whe n the B en l i vogl i o ,

fa m ily regai n ed thei r po w er i n B olog n a A s fo r the g reat .

t o m b the P ope had chan ged his mi nd an d would decorate

, ,

the Sixti n e Chapel with pai n ti ngs i n stead an d n o a r tist ,

would s u i t h i m but M ichela n gelo th e sculptor It w as i n .

v ai n he tried to excu se himself he h ad to lear n all th e ,

p ro c esses of fr esco pai n ti ng an d for some years his c h ose n

-

a r t w as give n u p o n ly to sho w that he w as also master i n

an other art Ye t eve n his pai n ti n gs prove that he was i n
.

reality emphatically a sc ulptor so m u ch i n them sho w that

,

h e revered form mo r e than either colour o r texture B y the .

time the ceili n g w as fi n ished th e P ope died ( on February 2 1 ,

an d his n ep h e w Cardi n al A i n en s e cou n ti n g the cost

, g ,

o f the ma u soleum w hich M ichela n gelo had begu n decided ,

n o t to follow o u t that gorgeous desig n b u t to s u bstitute ,

a n other on a m o r e moderate s c ale ; b ut this was desti n ed to

be laid asi d e for the n ew P ope Leo X bei n g a M edi c i
, ,
.
, ,

pre fe rred that th e s c u lptor should be employed i n to m b

b uildi n g at Flore n ce fo r the glorificat i o n of his fam ily Th e .

com m issio n fo r the fac ade of San L ore n zo w as gi ve n an d agai n ,

he w e n t to Carrara to ch o ose mar bles .

N ea rly all L eo X s reign w as frittered a w ay i n tryi n g to

’
.

t marbles from a n e w q u a rry at P iet r a Sa n ta w hich w as

g e ,

i n the t e rr ito r y of the Flo r e n ti n e s roa d s h ad to be made

an d w hole q u a r ries exhausted wi thout fi n di n g bl o c ks good

e n o u gh His m e n de c ei v ed h i m an d w or r ies an d diffi c u lties

.
,

f ret ted h i m i n to an ill n ess an d m a n y yea r s w e r e lost i n

,

this w ay . The n came a recall to Rome ; the n ephe w of

J ulius the D uke of Urbi n o i n sisted o n the tomb to his
,
1L l ’
nN s Is n o s o . E x M Ia LA N e E Lo B UO N A n nor I
. FRO M T HE To n e or Lo a n
.

DE
’
M E DIC I ( G N ON
RA DS or Lo nn nz o II. M A e N i r Ico) .
1 72 E AR LY ITA L I AN S C UL PTO RS .

effi gy of the P ope Th ree recesses below co n tai n th e gra n d

.

statue of M oses i n the ce n t re a nd fig ures of Rel i gi on a n d Vi r tu e ,

o n each side Three other n iches ove r the sa r cophag u s h a v e

.

s t at u es of a P r op h et a Si byl a n d a l ll a d onna a n d Ch r i s t i n
, ,

th e ce n tre M ost of these were by i n fe r i r artis ts o n ly the

.
o
,

l lf os es i s really M ichela n gelo s He be ga n four other fig u res ’

.

o f slaves or ca ti v es for it w hich are w o n de r fully fi n e i n

‘

p ,

n ro d el l i n g but they w e re n e v e r fi n ished ; two are n o w at

,

P a r is the othe r s ve r y u n fi n ished are i n Boboli G a rde n s

, , , ,

Flo r e n ce A fter this w e have n o mo r e w o r ks o f sculpture

.

f rom his han d except pe r haps the Fi el d n ow at th e ba c k of

, ,

the high altar o f the D uomo o f Flo r e n ce which was left ,

u n fi n ished at his death .

A ll the latter part o f M ichela n gelo s l i fe was take n up i n

’

’
the o n erous duties as architect of St Peter s whe r e he had .
,

to fight cliqu es cabals j ealousies vacillatio n s of papal pat r o n s

, , , ,

a n d a thousa n d an d on e wo r ries O n February 17t h 15 63 .

, ,

he died of slo w fever ; an d as Rome an d Flore n ce had

quarr elled over him while livi n g so they disp u ted for h i m ,

whe n dead Fl ore n ce at last obtai n ed the body an d i t was

.
,

i n ter r ed with g r eat ce r emon ies at Sa n ta C roce .

Th e cha racte r istics o f this great a r tist w e r e th oro ugh

ear n estn ess i n study a w a n t of sel f app reciatio n which m ade
,
-

h i m ofte n diss atis fi ed that his work did n ot come u p to

his ideal an d so he aba n do n ed it th u s accou n ti n g for the
, ,

ma n y u n fin ished statues a complete dis d ai n of we alth fo r its

o w n sake ; a ge n e r ous spirit which re n dered h i m a faithful

a n d ki n d f rie n d w here he w as love d as i n his pupil Ur b i n o s

’

case He had ho we v e r a broodi n g Spi r it which co n cei v ed

.
, , ,

g ra n d thi n gs b ut rarely ope n ed o ut to co n fide n ce w ith his

,

fellow m en ; his li fe w as l ived alo n e ; few were his f r ie n d s

-
,

a n d fe wer stil l h i s i n timate compa n io n s He seems to stan d .

 M I C HE L A G EL O
N O O
B U N ARR TI . 1 73

alo n e on a pedestal an d to obtai n more w o rship as the yea rs

,

pass by He i mi tated n on e a n d was great he w as i m itated

.

an d his fo l lo w ers lo w ered a r t .Th e str e n g th which i n

,

M ich e la n gelo s co n ceptio n s takes the fo r m of n obility becam e

’
,

their stu mbli n g block

-
. M istakin g the outwa rd si gn s of
gra n deu r fo r the spirit of g reatn ess the pai n ters a nd sculpto rs
,

who i mitated the mas te r dege n erated too f reque n tly i n to

m ore m u scular coarse n ess . Kn owledge of a n atomy was n o
lo n ger a mean s of sho w i n g the beauty of fo r m but was set ,

up as the obj e ct an d en d of art an d from this time scholars

,

to s urp ass their m asters as i n the precedin g ce n turies .

 PAR T IV .

L
SC U PTU RE IN THE SIX TEE N TH
C E N TU Y R .

C H AP TE R I .

B AC C I O BA N NE
DI LL I .

F TE R th e death of Lore n zo de M e d i c i m ost of the

’

Flore n ti n e artists foll o w ed Leo X to Rome but h i s .

,

reign prolific as it was i n arc h itects an d pai n ters p r od uced

, ,

very fe w artistic scu l pto rs beyo n d M ichela n gelo himself .

Ho w ever on the r evival of the M edici power i n Flore n ce

, ,

i n the perso n o f C osimo s on of G iova n n i d elle Ba n de

,

Nere w h o was made D uke o f Tuscan y i n 15 3 7 ar tistic

, ,

patro n a ge also revived an d Cosi mo s court was graced by

,
’

a per fect cote r ie o f a r tists an d sculpto r s .

A lthou gh n ot e n dowed with the i n sti n ctive good taste o f

L ore nz o il M agn i fico the D uk e w as a ve r y ear n est patro n o f
,

a r t an d gave his thoughts to the decoratio n of the city a s

, ,

m uch or more tha n any of his p r edecesso r s had do n e He .

1 76 EAR LY ITAL I AN SC UL PTO RS .

th e ben efit he could himself he tore the cartoo n to preve n t

his compa n io n s profit i n g equally ; some say the deed was
don e out of jealou sy to M ichelan gelo ; others as a n act of
h
rash champio s ip for his frie n d Leon ardo da V i n ci who on
n ,

this occasion was B uon arr oti s rival Un fortu n ately jealous
’
.
,

action s were n ot u n frequen t i n the l ife of this scul ptor ,

a n d he had always an overwee n i n g appreciatio n of his o wn

tale n ts .

On e of his earliest work s was a youthful M er cu ry hold

i n g a flute i n his ha n d which was bought by G iova nni
,

Battista della Palla for F ra n cis I of Fran ce . .

Cardi n al G iova nn i M edici bei n g struck by the merit of a

,

St J er om e w hich he m odelled i n wax obtai n ed for him the

.
,

commission i n 15 14 to make a colossal statue of St P eter .

,

for the Duomo of F loren ce N 0 use was m ade of this for fifty
.

years til ] at the ma rr i age of C osimo s son with G iovan n a of

, ,
’

A us tria i t was placed i n t h e Duomo n ear the t r ibun e of San

,

Z en ob i .

B accio soon after w en t to Rome to show a model of a D avi d

,

k i l l i ng G ol i a th to P ope Leo X i n hope of obta i n i n g his

.

patron age but his Holi n ess o n ly despatched him to Lo r eto

,

with a recommen dation to A n drea San sovi n o that he should

employ him on the sculptures for the shri n e of the Sa n ta
C as s . Here his jealous n ature led to quarr els between h i m
s elf a n d Sa n sovi n o an d B a n din elli bei n g worsted retired to

Rome leavi n g his relief of the N a ti vi ty of th e Vi rgi n hal f

,

fi n ished at L oreto .

He sculptured an Orp h eus i n Inf er no for the Cortile of the

M edi ci palace i n F lore n ce the mod ellin g of which shows
,

his s t udy from the a n tique duri n g his sojourn i n Rome .

In on e in sta n ce he made a direct copy from the a n ti que ,

by reproduci n g i n marble the group of the La oco on for

 B ACC I O BAN D IN E LL I . 177

C ardi n al M edici to presen t to the Ki n g of Fran ce but ,

’
i n stead o f goi n g to P aris B an di n elli s copy was se n t to
,

Flo r e n ce w here it rem ai n s i n the cor r ido r of the Uffi zi ; the

,

b ro n ze on e modelled by Jacopo San sovi n o w as se n t to

F r a n ce a n d is n ow i n the Louvre B accio resto r ed the arm
,
.

’
o f on e of the L aocoo n s so n s which was wa n ti n g i n the

a n tiqu e g roup .

O n his retu rn to Flore n ce the great disp u te of his l ife

bega n abo u t the statue o f Her cu l es a nd Ca cus A g reat
,
.

block of m arble had been excavated at Ca rrara i n 15 08 an d ,

the Floren ti n e G o n falon ie re P ie r Se de r i n i w as d esi rous that

, ,

M ichela n gelo should sculpture f r om it a He r cules as a .

pe n da n t to the D avid e rected si n ce 15 03 at the door of the

P al azzo V e cc hio B ut the great master had other wo r ks
.

on h a n d bei n g e m ployed i n the P ope s servi c e at Ro m e an d

’

Bo l ogn a an d i n h i s abse n ce Ba n din elli by a se r ies of schemes

, , ,

obtai n ed the co m missio n for the statue an d w e n t to Ca rrara ,

to discover the blo c k to suit his design an d re n der it mo r e ,

po rtable It was still so heavy that the mean s of tra n sport

.

by water w e r e i n suffi cie n t an d the mas s s u n k to the botto m

,

o f the A rn o n ea r Si gn a Whe n afte r much delay an d ma n y

.

vi c i ssitudes the fated block reached the sculptor s stu d io i n ’

Flo r e n ce he discovered that he had he w n it ca relessly w hile

,

at Ca rrar a an d its p r oportio n s would n o lo nger fit the model

,

w hi c h he had made an d sh ow n to the P ope A s a n atural .

co n sequ e n ce the f resh n ess had gon e ou t of his i n spi ratio n ,

an d after maki n g seve ral stiff an d li feless models he at

le n gth decided to begi n B ut he had barely blocked out
.

the limbs when on e of those sudde n chan ges occ ur red so

,

frequ en t i n Flo r en ce i n those days — th e M edici we r e f uor us ci ti

exiled an d he as their partisa n thought it wise to retire to
( ) ,

L ucca . In his abse n ce the Sign oria , by a decree dated

E IS
. . .
178 E AR LY IT AL I AN SC UL P T RS O .

Au gu s t 2 2 , 15 28 , gave the marble to M ichelan gel o its first ,

possessor an d he began to chan ge B an di n elli s Her cul es a n d

,
’

Ca cus i n to a Sa mson s l a yi ng P h i l i s ti nes but before man y ,

st r okes of his mal let w ere struck Flore n ce was i n the m idst
,

o f the siege an d M ichela n gelo flu n g away the s ca rp el l o to

,

de fe n d his beloved San M i n iato from the g un s of the P r i n ce

of O r a n ge on the A rcetri hi l ls .

Peace co n cluded M i chela n gelo was emplo y ed on the

,

M edici chapel i n San L ore n zo an d the m arble g i ve n b ack

,

to B an di n elli who this ti m e brought his work to completio n

, ,

an d the colossus w as fi n ished i n 15 3 4 an d placed i n fro n t of ,

t h e P alazzo V ecchio on M ay l s t i n that year I t is m o r e .

i n teresti n g for its story than for its o w n excelle n ce Th e .

’
o n ly on e of B a n di n elli s co n temporaries who fou n d a word
of praise for it was his most e n vied riva l M ichela n gelo ,

w h o said that the head of C ac u s was a good artistic wo r k

for the rest man y so n n ets an d epig rams we r e w rit te n o n i t
, ,

but al l fa r f r om laudatory There i s a great deal of muscula r

.

developme n t ab out the figu r e of Hercules but very little ,

actio n or force ; he seems to be calmly sta n di ng above his

writhi n g foe His ill success wit h this d id n ot howe v er
.

d e ter B an di n ell i f r om m aki n g every effort to obtai n the n ext

gigan tic block of ma rble excavated i n 15 5 4 with whi c h
,
.
,

C osimo I w ished to m ake a colossal statue of N eptu n e for a

.

fou n tai n on th e P i a z za della Sig n oria .

I n stead of on e r ival he had i n this case six an d though the ,

D uchess was h i s ally C ell i n i A mma nn ati an d G iova n n i da

, , ,

B o l og n a who all m ade models were serious oppo n e n ts Ho w

, , .

ever a stro n ger ha n d t han these removed B an di n elli f r om the

,

co n test He died i n Februa r y 15 5 9 while s u pe r i n te n di n g the

.
, ,

erectio n of hi s family tomb i n the church of the SS A n n u n ziata .

,

for which h e had sculptured the P i etd which stil l adorn s it .

18 0 EA R LY ITA L I AN C UL PTO RS
S .

’
B efore Ban di n ell i s death he was e n gage d In a gran d
'

scheme to deco r ate with sculpture the choir of the D uo m o

of Flore n ce G i u lia n o di Baccio d A gn ol o bei n g the architect
’
.
,

Th e scheme was n ever completed though B a n di n elli fi n ished ,

the statues of Ad a m an d E ve whic h were placed i n the ,

D uomo but removed i n 172 2 Though n ot devoid o f me r it

,
.
,

co n temporaries co n dem n ed the statues as w a n ti n g i n grace .

To show h o w little rea l feeli n g e n tere d i n to this artist s

’

works it is e n o ugh to say that the fi r st statues of A dam an d

,

E ve n ot pleasi n g him h e c h a n ged the m i n to a B a cch us an d

,

Cer es w h ich stil l ador n the ile x groves i n the B oboli

,

garde n s For the same form to suit both religious an d

.

pagan cha r acters it must fo llo w that se n time n t is vague an d

,

rel i gious feeli n g e n tirely wa n ti n g Th e balustrade of marble.

which e n closed the choir was ho w ever fi n i s h ed an d ador n ed

, ,

w ith n o less tha n 9 0 r eliefs each represe n ti n g the figu r e o f a

,

prophet s i byl or eva n gelist Th e for m was altered i n the

, , .

begi n n i n g of this ce n tury an d 2 4 of the r eliefs removed an d

,

placed i n the O pera del D uomo Some of these a r e th e best .

works of B a n di n elli our illustratio n is take n fro m t w o

o f them .
 C H AP TE R II .

O O
B A RT L M M EO A M MA NN A TI . O O
TRIB L .

ARTO L O M M E O Amman n ati ( bor n i n Floren ce 15 1 1 ,

d ied 15 9 2 ) was n ot at al l higher i n a r tistic feeli n g

than his rival Ban din ell i His t rai n i n g was adequate ; he
.

was fi r st a scholar of Ban din el li an d the n wo rked at V e n ice

u n de r Jacopo San sovi n o from whom he also imbibed his
,

a r chitectu ral k n owledge .

It was har dl y possible to li ve in Flo r en ce without falli n g

i n with the gen eral devotion to M i c helan gelo an d A m man ,
’
n ati left Sa n sovi n o s more refi n ed style to become like B an di ,

n e lli an imitato r of B uo n a rr oti

, b ut with the same wan t ,

of spi r it i m itation had the sam e deteriorati n g e ffect an d

, ,
’
A m m an n ati s colossal N ep tun e on the foun tai n has the very
faults which n rark Ba cc io s Her cu l es a nd Ca cus — tr em en d
’

ou s developme n t of m uscle an d yet an utter an d i n a n e wa n t

,

o f fo r ce an d life Th e Her cul es at P adua is a g reat improve

.

men t on thi s while the allego r ic stat ues of Wi s do m a nd

.

L a bour Hon our a nd F am e w h ich adorn the to m b of M a r co

, ,

B ena vi d es i n the church of the E remitan i at P adua cause him ,

to r an k still hi gher Thi s fi n e mo n ume n t was e r ect ed i n 15 8 3

. .

P ossibly h ad pat r on age bee n on a hi gher basis the sc u lp

, ,

tors of D uke C osimo s court might have rise n to more lofty

’
18 2 E AR LY IT AL I AN SC UL PT RS O .

con ception s but i t was their fate to b ece nre m ore decorators
,

A mm an n ati s statues are to be see n i n the garde n s

'
o f villas .

o f Boboli an d Cos tel l o w i ril e i n th e park at Pratoli n o the

,

artist built up a colossal figure emble m atic of the Ape n n i n es ,

i n brick an d mortar stuccoed to rep resen t ston e

, Th e .

G ra n d Duk e F ra n c esco employed h i m ofte n i n architectural

works th e Po n te Sa n ta Tr i n i th bei n g h i s erectio n as well as
, ,

some parts of the Palazzo Pitti an d the adorn me n ts of the ,

gard en s belo ngi n g to it In the churc h of San ta Chiara at

.

Urbi n o is a mo n u m e n t b y A mma nn ati to th e D ulce Fr a nces co

M a ri a whic h he did du ri n g a visit to th e court of G uido
,

b aldo 11 o f Urbi n o At the same ti me he sculptured a

. .

L ed a for th e Duke whi c h much pl eased him This visit .

was a fat efu l on e to the artist for he be c a m e attached to ,

L aura Battifc rr i one of the ladies of th e Duchess Th e fair

, .

L aura was a poc tes s who m Tasso himself ho noured by calli ng

,

Pri d e of Urbi n o Th e D uchess of Urbi n o refused

”
h e r the .

to part wit h such a n orn am e n t to her court an d gave th e ,

ambitious artist his co ngé ; but the la d y dispe nsi ng with the ,

sanc tio n of h er patro n ess married A nrm annati at L oreto i n,

15 5 0 a n d we n t to Ro m e wit h him
, .

It was lo ng before the D uchess forgave this act of i n d e

e nd e n ce ; but the u n io n proved a very hap y an d
p p o n e ,

A mmann a ti w h o died i n 15 9 2 , did n ot lon g survive his

,

bel o ved M ado n n a Laura .

Tm RO Lo was a n other of th e
scholars of San sovi n o who fell
i n to the s nare of imitatio n o f M ichela ngelo He was the .

s o n o f a wood carver n amed Raff aello better k n ow n by his

.
-

n i c k n ame o f Riccio de Peri c oli an d was bo rn i n 15 00

’

, .

Some authors say the family n ame was l i raeci no but the ,

you ng N i ccol b was all his life k n ow n as Tribolo a n ame ,

&
18 4 EA R LY ITAL I AN SC UL PT RSO .

B olog n a after the death of h i s patron but we n t to visit an ,

artistic frie n d Stagi o at Pisa Stagi o was employed at the

, ,
.

time i n carvi n g some ca n dlesticks for the cathedral at P isa ,

an d as his o wn ge n ius lay more i n decorative tha n statuesque

sculpture he begged h i s frie n d to carve the a n gel s which

,

were to surmoun t his pilla r ed basis These as w ell as the .

Bologn a wo r ks sho w Tribolo as a re fin ed an d graceful a r tist .

A fou ntai n which is i n the ga r de n s at F o n tai n ebleau — havi n g

bee n bought by G iovan n i della P alla — shows his origi n ality
of co n ceptio n It rep r ese n ts the goddess of n atu r e whose
.
,

m an y breasted figure is surrou n ded by fishes quadr upeds

-

, ,

an d a ci r cle o f boys holdi n g festoo n s of flo w ers .

Duri n g the siege of Flore n ce Tribolo l ike his greater frie n d

, ,

M ichela n gelo employed h imself i n an e n gi n eeri n g capacity

, ,

an d made a clever model of the w hole cou n try rou n d Flore n ce .

A treacherous use was made o f this model which was secretly ,

packed up i n some bal es of wool an d sen t to the P ope .

V asari is n o t ve r y explicit as to whom this bet r ayal i s due ,

whether to Tr ibolo himsel f or to other u n faithful citize n s .

I t seems i n di r ectly to have led to Tr i b ol o s appoi n tme n t as ’

’
sculptor i n the Pope s service after the siege an d we n ext ,
’
fi n d him as Sa n sovi n o s assistan t i n worki n g at the shri n e
o f the Sa nta Ca sa at Loreto Here he fi n ished the fi n e
.

relief of the M a r ri a ge of th e Vi rgi n which Sa n sovi n o had

begu n In it h e h as displayed a great deal of life an d act i o n
.
-
.

Th e figures of prophets i n the n iches were also modelled by

Tr ibolo These so pleased the P ope that he despatched
.

Tr i b olo forth w ith to Flore n ce to assist M ichela n gelo i n the

San L ore n zo sculptures Th e great master desired him to
.

carve two figu res on e symbolic of E a r th bowed dow n with

,

g r ief an d the other of Hea ven radian tly triumpha n t to

, ,

place on either side of the statue of G iulia n o but i n the very

 TRIB O LO .
18 5

attai nme n t of h i s ambitio n poor Tr i b ol o s n ame asserted ’

itself Tribu la tio n was still h i s fate ; the d eadly h a n d of

.

malar i a was laid on h i m an d he w as too weak from c on ti n ued

,

attacks of fever to con tin ue h i s w ork which fell i n to the ,

h a n d s o f h i s rivals W he n at l en gth he had mo delled the

.

statue of E a r th the Pope Clemen t V IL die d an d the w hole

, , , ,

u n dertaki n g was aban do n ed A fter this Tribolo beca m e a.

m e r e co u r t sculptor arra n gi n g p agea n ts for the wed d i n g

,

feasts an d tri um p h al p roce ssio n s of D uke Cosimo ador n i n g ,

the gard e n s of the villa of Castell o an d the Pitti P alace w ith

g r eat allegoric fou n ta i n s arr a n gi n g the dresses an d scen ic
,

e ffec ts at the court plays an d m ock tou r n ame n ts an d q u ite ,

aba n do n i n g the artistic ca reer of a sculpto r w hich he com ,

m en ced wi th good promise He also u n de rtook seve ral

.

a r c h itectu r al works an d made an aqueduct to b ri n g the

,

waters of the A rn o an d the M u g n on e togethe r i n to th e

labyrin th at Castello whe r e his g r eat fou n tai n w as placed
, .

A rou n d the fou n ta i n a r e d isposed a great n umber of st atues

i n n iches an d loggie
, A mo n g the m are imperso n atio n s of
.

the tw o rive r s A rn o an d M u gn o n e of the four seaso n s an d

, , ,

th e A r ts Scie n ces an d V i rtues N othi n g can be m ore s i gn i fi

, , .

can t that the d ecli n e of ar t had al ready begu n than a com

parison of the spi r it of thes e stat ues w ith th e allego r ic o n es
o f the masters of the fo ur tee n th a n d fiftee n th ce n tu r ies Th e .

greater sophisticatio n an d t h e much lo w er to n e o f feeli n g is

re m arkable Th e beautiful i n laid floo r of the Lau re n tian
.

Lib r a r y at San Lo r e n zo was the wo r k o f Tr ibolo He died .

on September 7th 15 5 0 of a m alig n an t fe v er an d was

, , ,

i n terred i n the burial g roun d of the C omp ag n ia dello Scalzo

-
.
 C HAP TE R III .

B E N V E N U TO E
C LL I I N .

n ow come to the ge n ius i n whom culmi n ated the

art of gold work i n g that art which h ad fl o urished
,

fo r ma n y ce n turies i n Flore n ce an d fro m whose ra n k s came

,

ma n y of the ci n que ce n to artists

-
.

B en ve n uto C elli n i was born at Flore n ce i n the year 15 00 ,

the ve r y date of the hig h est alti t ude of art ; but although h i s
e a r ly works sho w the i n flue n ce o f artistic feeli n g at its best ,

yet he l ived lo n g e n ough for the faults of the decli n e to be

recogn izable i n his l ater productio n s Some o f these co m e .

”
disti n c tly u n der the cl ass of sei ce n to a n ame w hich has ,

become sy n o n ymous wi th imitatio n an d ma nn erism It .

seems to be a l a w o f n ature that ge n ius should show its

fo r ce by stru ggli ng ag a i n st obstacles Ben ve n uto Cell i n i s .
’

obstacle was music which his father w h o was on e o f the

, ,

Pifferari to the Sig n oria wished him to take as a pro fessio n

, .

Th e P ifferari dressed in a gree n u n iform an d whe n ever the ,

G o n falo n iere appe ared i n public they preceded him wit h

,

their silver flutes G iova n n i Cel l i ni s lo ve of music was so

.
’

g r eat that he quite n eglec ted his more profitable tale n t of

 18 8 E A R LY ITA L IAN
“

SC UL P T R S O .

daughters who were lef t destitute an d gave them a good

, ,

h ome i n his house til l his death He sought his pleasu r es .

i n the lo w est society an d yet was at home at the tables of

,

pri n ces an d pop es though ofte n o ffe n di n g the dig n i ty of

,

ladies by his outspoke n rough n ess In Flore n ce he made .

an e n emy of the G ra n d Duchess E leo n o r a an d i n Paris of ,

M adame d l tam p es who w as on e of the great powers i n

i ’

the court of F ra n cis I This wild gen ius led a most erratic
.

life yet n ever an idle on e

, Th e broils his impetuous .

spirit led him i n to caused him i n t ur n to fly from Flore n ce

O B V E RS E
R E V E L SE

or FR A N
C IS I . B Y B E NV E NUTO C ELLIN I .

P r oba bl y m a de i n A D.. 15 3 7
.

to Sie n a the n ce to B olog n a the n back to F lore n ce whe n ce

, , ,

a quarrel with his bro ther se n t him to Pisa A whim o n ce .

i n duced him to walk to Rome with his f r ie n d Tasso the ,

wood carver In eve r y city he fou n d artistic employme n t

-
.

but his fi n est works were executed i n Rome w he r e he ,

eclipsed the artist Carad oss o i n maki n g the beauti ful en a

,

m elled butto n s which the cavalie r s wore i n their hats .

Th e fin est of these was on e repres en ti n g L ed a a n d th e Swa n

,
 B E N V ENUT O C E LL IN I . 18 9

which h e made for M esser G ab ri el l e Ceseri n o at that tim e

'

G o n falo n iere of Rome A t len gth the P ope h eanl of his

.

skil l through some beautiful silver vases whi ch he made for

Cardin al s Salviati an d C ibo an d before lon g the pugn acious
,

master of delicate works was en sco n ced on familiar terms i n

the household of the P ope He n ot o n ly made exquisi te
.

vases an d jewels for Cleme n t V IL but whe n the troops of ,

B ourbo n besieged Rome i n 15 2 7 we fin d C ell i n i i n stalled as

,

com man der of the defen ces in Castel Sa n t An gelo the fortress ’
,

whe r e the P ope was i n hidi n g an d from w hose safe battlemen ts

,

h e showed a gr eat deal of warlike bluste r This m ust have .

bee n take n for bra v e r y for the C o n do ttiere B aglion i offe red
,

h i m the comman d of a compan y if he would e n ter the service

an d go to P eru gia w ith him ; but this C ellin i did n ot care

to do an d was sei zed with a sudden w is h to see his father

, ,

whi c h n ecessitated his i mmediate return to Flo ren ce where ,

he had a great deal to boast of his p rowess du r in g the sack of

Rome an d al l his famil y were dazzled by his e q uipme n ts
,

a n d spoils of war B u t he did n ot rest lon g at home ; we

.

n ext i n 15 2 8 fi n d him i n M a n tua whither he we n t to fly

, , ,

fr om the plague which was ragi n g i n Flo r e n ce G i u lio .

Roma n o the n employed i n pai n ti n g hi s frescoes in the

,

P alazzo del Te i n troduced him to the D uke for whom he

, ,

made a beautiful reliquary to con tain the relic of the blood

o f Christ Th e desig n was very rich an d was su r moun ted
.
,

by a seated figure of the Saviour with on e han d holdi n g the ,

c r oss an d the other poi n ti n g to the wo un d i n His side Th e .

D uke s brother E r cole G on zaga bishop of M a n tua e m ployed

’
, , ,

him to cut his p on ti fical seal an d would have given him

,

several comm ission s had n o t C elli n i ala rmed by an attack

, ,

o f feve r fled t o Flo r e n ce agai n where he had the sorro w

, ,

o f fin di n g his father dea d an d the famil y home broken u p .

190 EA R LY ITAL I AN SC UL P T RS O .

However he determi n ed to stay i n Fl oren ce an d ope ni n g

, , .

a bottega i n the M ercato N u ovo he soo n fou n d work ,

e n ough to do i n artistic jewellery His ol d reputati on for .

hat button s was kept u p A mo n gst others he made a ve r y

.
,

beautiful on e for F ederigo G i n or i w ith a design on it of ,

A tl as s up p or ti ng th e ea r th A t this time he formed a

.

f r ien dship for M ichelan gelo an d though the g reat master

,

does n ot seem to have had an y special sympathy for him ,

C el li n i always preserved i n fi n ite respec t for his co n te m pora r y .

It was n ot n atu r al he should rem ai n lo n g at home In .

15 3 0 he was agai n i n Ro m e whe r e he made th e famo u s button

,

This button is i n fact a very la rge

’
for the P ope s p i vi a l e .

k i n d of brooch w hich i n the guise of a breast pl ate faste n s

, , ,

the heavy emb roidered outer vestme n t of his Holi n ess Tw o .

or three other ar tists co m peted for this commission but ,

Th e
’
Cel l i n i s design pleased the P ope i n fi n itely the best .

gold work was to be the setti n g of a magn ificen t diamo n d

whi c h the Pope possessed C elli n i so a rran ged his desig n that
.

the brillian t formed a seat for the figure of the A lmighty

F athe r ; be n eath it we r e three a n gels i n relief an d a circle ,

of p u tti su r rou n ded the whole desig n mi n gled with ma n y ,

gems Th e P ope n ext commission ed him to make the dies

.

fo r the mi n t an d the most a r tistic of all the P apa l coi n s was

,

the result the obverse has an E cce Hom o an d the reverse a ,

P op e a n d E mp er or s us ta i n i ng th e cr oss An other fi n e wo r k .

do n e about this time 15 3 1 is the chalice made for the Pope

, ,
.

Th e cup is suppo r ted on th r ee figures of Faith Hope an d , ,

C h arity an d its f ee t is adorn ed with fi n e reliefs of scriptural

,

subj ects He seems at this time to be on the high road to

.

wealth a n d a fflue n ce ; but n o i n a roysteri n g mood he kills

,

an e n vious rival a ce r tai n goldsmith n amed P ompeo an d

, ,

though two ca rdi n als defe n d him an d P op e P aul III wh o , .

19 2 EA R LY IT AL I AN SC UL P TO RS .

wa n ts the dies for hi s coi n s cut gives h i m a safe con duct ,

-

he thi n ks it wise to ru n away from Rome It would take too .

lo n g to fo l low thi s erratic ge n ius in all his wa n deri n gs A fter .

goi n g to V en ice an d Padua an d back to Rome worki n g for

, , ,

pri n ces everywhere he starts off i n 15 3 7 for his lo n gest ,

j ourn ey to Paris whither Fran cis I had i n vited him F rom

, ,
. .

this time h i s l ife was passed betwee n F ran ce an d Italy goi n g ,

an d returni n g as his w hi m prompted him Th e Fre n ch .

ki n g gave him an an n ual stipen d of 3 00 scudi afte rward s

'

au g m e n ted to 700 i n retu rn for which he did man y exquisite

,

works chief of which are the ewer an d basi n i n silver gilt

,

r ep ouss é which the C ardi n al of F errara presen ted to the

,

Ki n g t w elve mythologic statuettes i n silver an d the famous

, ,

golde n salt cellar n ow i n V ie n n a This is about sixtee n

-

,
.

i n ches i n diameter ; the r ep oussé an d chased ba s e is of a rich

desig n emblematic of the attributes of sea an d lan d an d is
, ,

surm ou n ted by two sitti n g statuettes of Ceres an d N eptu n e .

His on e great statue the P erseus was a work of his later , ,

years an d was don e at the commissio n of Duk e C osimo His

,
.

accou n t of the misfortu n es an d excitemen t of f u sin g an d

casti n g it is ve ry amusi n g He n ea r ly set fire to his house .

by the fi er cen ess of his fu r n ace then the metal ceased to r u n

before the mould was half full an d he cast i n to the furn ace ,

all his pewter plates an d dishes of which there were 2 00 to , ,

make the metal more fluen t an d after terrible suspe n se the ,

mould was triumphan tly fil led Th e statue is without doubt .

a very fi n e on e but there a r e poi n ts i n which it falls ve r y

,

sho r t of perfec tio n especially i n the form an d settin g of the

,

right leg Th e P erseus occupied C elli n i duri n g several years

.

he says the Duk e C osimo gave h im th e commissio n i n

1
,

A ugust 15 45 at P oggio a Cajan o an d he made the small wax

, ,

1
i
V ta di B en v enuto C ellin i ,
’
Li b II p 3 82
. . . .
 REN V EN UTo C E LLIN I 19 3
-

model (n ew i n the N ation al M useum ) that same year Th e .

head of M ed usa w as cas t i n 15 46 but the fig ure of P ers eus ,

w as n ot fused till 15 49 A s a casti n g i n bro n ze it is tech n i

.

cally a t r i u m ph ; he had already so m e expe r ie n ce i n the

p r ocess h avin g in 15 45 made a fi n e bro n ze bust of D uke
,

Cosimo which is n ow i n the N atio n al M use um i n Flore n ce

, , ,

an d is a most characteristic work It is n ot ho w ever equal i n

.
, ,

me rit to the bro n ze portrait of B in do Al tov i ti whi c h w on the ,

app roval of M ichela n gelo himself who wrote to Cell i n i from

,

Ro m e that he had always k n own him as the fi n est goldsmi th

i n the wo r ld an d that hen ceforth he should recogn ize him as
,

a gr an d sc u lpto r .

A Cr ucifi x i n marble which he o ffered to the D u c hess

E lean o ra wife of Cosi m o shows his power of modelli n g
, ,
.

Th e D uche s s w as very much offen ded at his man n er of

offeri n g the gift an d refu sed it fo r C el li n i afte r va u n ti n g its
, , ,

pri celess wo rth proposed to make her a p resen t of it if she

, ,

wo ul d n either favo ur n or oppose him i n the co mpe t ition for

“
the N ep tu ne of th e Foun ta i n Then said the D u c hess ,
”
,

you value n eithe r my help n or my disfavou r O n the .

”
con t rar y Lady mi n e he replied
, ,
I val u e them so much
,

that I give you i n recog n ition a thi n g w orth 2 000 d u cats ,

but I have mo re faith in my ow n s k ill an d am su r e that if ,

I we re allowed fair play I should gain the pal m even i f

Mi c helan gelo himself were my rival
”
.

Havi n g thus made an en emy of the D uche ss he on e day ,

gave w ay to such u n govern ed i n solen ce to the D uke that he

lost the commission for the N ep tu ne even though his model ,

w as judged superior to that of h i s successful rival A m m a n n ati .

Thus C elli n i was ever his own en emy an d the fa m e of his ,

marvello us gen ius has come down to us m i ngled with the

memory of his man y person al faul ts .
 C HA P TE R IV .

O
G I VA NN I DA O OG NA
B L .

YO UN G E R con temporary of Celli n i an d on e who ,

sho wed more ge n ius i n actual sculpture was G iovan n i ,

da B olog n a the you n gest of all the competito r s for the Foun ta i n
,

of N ep tu ne . This artist sta n ds i n the same relatio n to the

sculpture of the Re n aissan ce as An drea del Sarto does to the
pai n ti n g — a ki n d of rock which holds back for a time the
flood of the decl in e G iovan n i da B olog n a or more properly
.
,

Jean de B olog n e was n ot an Italian by birth although his

, ,

trai n in g an d the adoptio n of Italy as a reside n ce has placed

him amo n g Italia n sc u lptors an d h is o w n m erits set hi m high
,

amon g his con temporaries He was born at D ouai i n 15 2 4

.
,

an d at an ea r ly age ca m e to Rome to study art His admi ra .

ti o n of M ichelan gelo brought h i m to Flore n ce for a better

study of the great master s works an d here he had the good
’

fortu n e to fi n d a fr ien d i n M esser B ern ardo V ecchietti who , ,

recogni zi n g the you n g foreig n er s gen i us took h i m in to hi s

’

own house .

His good taste stren gthen ed by a deep s tudy of th e

,

a n tique in Rome preven ted G iova n n i from that slavi sh

,

i mitation of M ichela n gelo which spoiled ma n y of h i s

M ER C UR Y
. B Y G ro v AN N I DA B OL O G N A . B e f or e A D
. .

In th e N a ti on a l M us eu m , Fl or ence .
 GIO VANN I DA B O LO G NA . 197

m an , which is very po werful was modelled from a n oble ,

Flore n tin e yout h Of the G i nori family A ter ra cotta sketch .

-

or model of thi s attributed to G iovan n i da B olog n a is

, ,

i n the South Ken si n gto n M useum N ear th e R ap e of th e .

Sa bi n es i n the L oggia dei La n zi stan ds G iova n n i s He r cu l es

’

a n d th e Cen ta ur a group showi n g po we r an d cl assic te n d e n c y

,

i n n o ordi n ary degree .

Th e t wo colossal statues of Cos i m o I on the P iazza della .

Sign oria an d Fer d i na nd o I on the P iazza della SS A n n u n ziata

. .

testify to his skill i n casti n g b r o n ze while his flyi n g [ Mer cur y ,

is a very t r iumph bo th of airy light n ess i n modelli n g an d of

perfect techn icality i n casti n g Th e swif t god see m s poised
.

mo m en tarily on on e foot ; the poetry of motio n is i n eve r y

lin e of his lithe figure If G iovan n i had don e n othi n g
.

else the M er c u r y Of the Flo ren tin e M useum must have

,

stamped h i m as a tru e ar tist It is supposed that the M ercur y

.

was cast to sen d to V ienn a as a prese n t from the G ra n d

,

D uke Of Tuscan y to the E mperor on the occasio n Of the ,

marr i age of G iovann a d A ustr i a with Fra n cesco dei M edici

’
,

1 5 64 . B ut the first cast havin g a flaw on the left thigh a ,

secon d copy w as cas t to se n d to V ien n a an d the first remain ed ,

i n Italy . Till the time O f P ietro Leopoldo I it was i n Rom e .

on the fou n tain o f the V ill a M edi c i but is n ow i n the ,

Nation al M useum Flo r en ce A reproductio n i n b ro n z e is i n

, .

the South Ken sin gton M use u m .

Other famous stat u es by G iovan n i da Bologn a are the ,

Vi ctor y in the Sala dei C in q ue c en to Flore n ce ; Sa ms on a n d ,

th e P h i l i s ti nes n ow i n Spai n an d a B a cc hus in bron ze at the

, ,

Hermitage at St P etersburg
. .

A umber of mi n or scu lpto r s were to be foun d i n Flore n c e

n

durin g the sixtee n th ce n tury such as V i n cen z i o D an ti of ,

198 E AR LY ITA L IA N C UL PTO RS
S .

Perugia wh o did a great deal of decorative sculpture for

,

C osimo L ; Vi n cen zi o de Rossi of Fiesole a scholar O f

’
,

Ban di n elli who sculpt ured the L a bour s of Her cul es n ow i n

, ,

the la rge hall of the Bargello or N atio n al M useu m ; Fran

cesco M oschi n o who has left some good works at Pisa an d
,

others Scul pture was however already on the decli n e

.
, , , ,

partly because imit atio n had take n the place Of i n spiratio n

an d i n ve n tio n partly because patro n age i n stead O f bein g
; ,

patriotic as i n the early days of the Republic w as private an d

, ,

courtly the decoratio n s Of villas an d private pal aces failin g

,

to call forth the higher n ature Of artists as the beauti fyin g of

,

ch urches an d creatio n Of great n ation al works had do n e an d

pa r tly on accou n t Of the e n tire chan ge Of thought an d aim s
brought abou t by the huma n istic teachi ng Of the Ren aissan ce .

So much atte n tion was give n to the outward form that the
purity Of the idea became a secon dary co n side ratio n In the .

wr iti n g th e social co n verse the public life the art Of the

, , ,

age outward brillia n ce an d appearan ce of classic lea rn i n g

,

gilded an d made dazzli n g the coarsest ideas V i rtually the .

,

h i sto ry Of sc u lpture closes here Sei ce n to ar t produced

.

but few scul ptors an d those u n importa n t while the seve n

, ,

teen th ce n tury brought forth the school Of B erni n i who ,

dragge d the art to its lowest abaseme n t till C an ova again ,

raised it by layin g the fou n datio n s of the modern school s .

2 00 EA R LY ITAL I AN se ULP TO R S .

Th e Sien ese gui ld of

sto n e worke r s then havi n g already
-

, ,

a rtistic ten den cies we r e on ly too will i n g to fall u n der the

,

i n flue n ce Of N i ocola P isan o an d to give themsel v es earn estly

,

to a higher style Of art Several of them especially Agosti n o

.
,

an d A gn olo e n tered the studio of the Pisan i as schola rs

, ,

an d i n them the Sien ese school rose to a height almo s t

equal to that of the Pisan a r tists .

Th e fi n est mo n u m en t Of the Sien ese school is the fa c ade

of O rvieto cathedral w hich — with the exceptio n of the
,

parts don e by G iova n n i an d A n d r ea P isa n o an d the artist s ,

5
vaguely called by V asari Tedeschi — was almost e n tirely Of
‘

Sien ese design an d executio n but with just so muc h O f the ,

Pisan i n fluen ce as G iovan n i an d N i ccol a had grafted i n to the

school withi n the last thirty years Th e first sculptor was .

Ramo di Pagan ell o G iovan n i P i san o s scholar ; w ith h i m

,
’

J acop o C osme Of Rome worked together with N i ccol a s

’
,

pupil Fra G uglielmo G uido Of Sien a & c

, ,
.

In 12 9 8 B on iface V II I read mass there but i n 13 10 th e

.

buildi n g was judged un safe by L ore n zo M ai tan i Of Sie n a ,

who was elected cap o m a es tr o an d the outsi de w all had to ,

be rebuilt From this time all the best sculpto rs of the day
.

vi ed the on e with the other i n ren deri n g the fa c ade beautiful ,

till at th e en d Of fifty years the B ible i n ston e which is spread ,

on its pilasters was complete

,
It is impossible to assign the
.

parts with an y deg r ee Of ce rt ai n ty to their respective authors .

Th e N oah Tu ba l ca m an d Seth as well as parts Of the seco n d

,
-

, ,

an d thi r d pilasters are i n the early style Of N i ccol a as their

, ,

short squ are figures sho w the fourth pilaster with its L as t
, ,

Jud gm en t is G iovan n i s man n er perfected Probably this

,
’
.

p ar t i s to be attributed to A gosti n o an d A g n olo 1

Some .

1
Th eser tis ts w h ose n am es are al ways c oupl ed togeth e h ave been
a ,
r
,

sup posed to be b roth ers ; b u t t h y were i n fact on l y fe ll ow s ch ol ars i n

e
, ,
-
 THE EAR LY MAST E R S O F SI E NA .
2 01

parts recall the composition of N i ccol a P isa n o i n his Sie n a

'
pulpit ; but there is a more adva n ced style an d g ra n der an d ,

more p oetic to n e — the feeli n g of D a n te an d Or cagn a is i n

them Th e Cr ea ti on of A d a m a n d E ve is also On e of the
.

later developmen ts Of the schools ; the drawi n g is n at ur al

an d u n co n v e n tio n al the design imagin ative
, .

Whi le A gostin o an d A gn olo were at wo r k wit h the m ulti

tude at O rvieto G iotto passed there on his way to N aples
, ,

an d his ar tistic eye soo n si n gled th em ou t as the rosses sor s

Of es pecial ge n ius ; throu gh him they Obtai n ed from P iet r o

Saccon e di P iet ramala the commissio n fo r the t omb to Bishop
G uido Tarlati at Arezzo which they bega n co n joi n tly i n 13 2 7
, ,

an d fi n ished i n 13 3 0 V a sari says that G iotto design ed it but

.

as they were both good an d expe r ie n ced sculptors it does n ot ,

seem likely that they would wo r k out the composition s Of

an o ther artist There was great scope for artistic illustratio n
.

i n the stirrin g life Of the warrior bishop G uido Tar lati who ,

wore the helmet as O fte n as the mitre an d did n ot con fi n e his ,

militan t spirit by an y mean s to the C hurch Th e subjoin ed .

list of the Sixteen h as reliefs ran ged be n eath the sa rc ophagus

-

with its effigy is e n ou h to Sho w the i n spiration which the

,
g

s culpto rs h a d for the spi r it they have shown i n them

1 G ui d e m ad e B i sh op .

2 C h os en L ord o f A r ezz o
. .

3 Th e C om m u n e d o i n g h i m h onour
. .

4 Th e C ou n cil i n O ffi c e .

5 G u id o b u ilds th e w all s O f A r ezzo

.

. .

6 Tak es th e C a s tl e of L u c i gna n o
. .

7 Ta k es Ch i s i i n t h e C asen t i no
u .

8 C o n que rs Fr on ol e
.

. z .

9 Si ege of Cas te l Focogna no

. .

10 Tak es B ond i na
. .

Gi v
o an n i Pi sa n o s stu dio ;
’
Agost in o b e i n g t h e s on of a Gi o van ni ,
an d

Agn ol o of Ventura .
2 02 E A R LY ITA L I AN SC UL P T RS O .

11 . B es i eges B u ci n c .

12 Tak i ng o f Cap r es e
. .

13 Destr uc ti o n O f L ater i na
. .

1 4 Ru i n of M onte Sa ns ovi n o
. .

1 5 C o ron a t i o n of L ou i s o f B ava ri a .

G
.

1 6 Death O f B i sh o p u id o Ta rl at i
. .

A goodly list of warlike subjects an d very dramaticall y ,

re n dered ; but regarded i n compariso n with later sculpture ,

they are rudely executed .

Al though so Often work in g toge t her Agosti n o an d A g n olo ,

were also sepa rately employed Ag n olo worked i n A ssisi .

,

where he made a chapel an d tomb i n th e lower church to a

brother Of C ardi n al N apol eon e O rsi n i .

A gosti n o laboured pri n cipa ll y i n Sie n a where he helped ,

to build t h e P al azzo P ubbli c o the co n ve n t of San Fra n cesco

, ,

an d on e or tw o Of the city gates his n ame is also recorded

with those of Lan do di Pietro an d M aestro G iacomo i n 13 40
as architect of the Fonte G a i a o n the piazza Agostin o ,
.

d ied some time i n the year 13 5 0 leavi n g a s on G iova n n i , , ,

who was cap o m a es tr o Of the D uo m o of Sien a i n 13 40 A ,

.

bas rel ief Of the M ado n n a an d Child by him is in a c h apel

-

a djoi n i n g the or tory Of San B ern ardi n o i n Sien a

a .

Th e scul ptors J A C O BE LLO an d P A O LO Of V e n ice son s of ,

A n ton io dalle M as egn e were worthy pupi l s of A gosti n o an d

,

SO closely di d they foll ow their maste r s style that

’
A g n olo
.
,

t w o of their works have lo n g be en attribute d to the Sie n ese

partn ers These are the A rea d i Sa n t Agosti no at Pavi a an d
.
’

the large A l ta r p i ece full Of statues rel iefs an d sculptured

-

, ,

orn a m e n ts w hich was i n the church Of San F ran cesco at

,

1
Bolog n a C icogn ara takes his proof Of the authe n ticity of
.

the latter fr o m some M SS i n the co n ve n t of San Fra n cesco

.

a n other M S i n the possessio n Of the E rcola n i family after

.
,

1
Stori a d el l a Scul tura v ol 111 cap v p 2 8 7
‘ ’
. . .
, . . .
2 04 E AR LY ITAL I A N SC UL PT RS O .

have been called on to mak e the tombs of both th e bishop

a n d his e n emy the emperor In that of Hen r y VII
.
1
th e .
,

e ffigy of the deceased robed i n hi s imperial ma n tle lies on

, ,

a white marble sarcophagus his un c r ow n ed head reposi n g,

peacefull y on a cushion M our n i n g gen ii adorn the e n ds

.

o f the sarcophagus a r ow of sai n ts the f ro n t of it This

,
.

tomb has been th r ee times moved It origi n ally stood i n .

the tribu n e of the D uomo of P isa ; the n ce it was tak e n to

the chapel of San Ra n ie r i ; n ext i n 172 7 it was placed over , ,

the door of the sacristy an d lastly i n the C ampo Sa n to whe re

, ,

it still remain s Lik e most of the sculptu r e of the ti m e it

. , ,

was o r igi n ally colou r ed a style which had e v ide n tly descen ded
,

from the pai n ted sculp tu r e on the E t r usc an sarcoph agi .

Th e tomb of B is /mp An toni o d Ors o of Floren ce commis

’

s i on ed by F ran cesco di B arb e r i n i st an ds i n the right aisle of

,

the D uomo of that city In this the bishop sits on his sa rc o

.

p gh a u s dressed i n his robes an d mitre an d with his ha n ds

, ,

crossed on his breast Th e fron t has a bas relief of a youth

.
-

k n eeli n g b efore Christ ; several an gels surrou n d th e group .

Ti n o worked also at the B aptistery of Flore n ce but the ,

subject of his labour is n ot k n ow n Th e church of San ta .

M aria N ovella has however a sig n ed work by him the to m b

, , ,

of B i s h op A l l otti of Flore n ce w h o d i ed i n 13 3 6 This is an

'

.
,

architectural tomb G othic ar ches supportin g the sarcophag u s ,

whi ch is ador n ed with a bas—relief Tw o an gels watch the .

deceased be n eath a G othic ca n opy It i s p r obable that the .

bishop gave the commissio n duri n g hi s life for on July 1 1 , ,

13 3 6 Ti n o was spoken of as
,
quon dam an d a n ew architect ,

elected i n his place at N aples Where si n ce the ye ar 1 3 2 4 he

'

h ad been work i n g i n the service of th e r oyal fami ly In .

'

13 25 he sculptured the tomb of M a r i a of Hu nga ry widow of ,

1
A c as t i s i n th e Sou th Kens i ngt on M useu m .
 THE EA R L Y MASTE RS o r SIE NA .
2 05

Charles II Th e Quee n herself had left 15 4 oz of gold fo r

. .

the purpose an d the tomb was placed i n th e church of San ta

,

M a r ia D om n a Regi n a n ear N aples whi ch she had res tored, , ,

1
as well as the co n ven t n ear i t .

Th e tom b of the P isa n form with a n gels an d ca n opy above it

, , ,
’
is pl aced i n the n u n s chapel an gel caryatides support the urn .

O ther wo rks at N aples by Tin o a r e the tomb of JlIa ti l d e ,

P r i ncess of A ca ca i n 13 3 2 that of Ca r l o D uke of Ca l a br i a

'

, , ,

i n the c hu r ch of Corpus D o m i n i i n 13 3 8 ; an d of his wife , ,

He also assisted i n buildi n g the cloiste r of

'

JlIa r za of Va l o as
'

Sa n M arti n o fo r Charles of C alabria about 13 2 5 ; an d the ,

c o n ve n t ch u r ch an d palace for Ki n g Robe r t on the hill of

, , ,

Sa n t E rasmo Si gn o r M ila n esi gi v es the date of his deat h

’
.

as 13 3 9 this is di fficult to reco n c i le w ith the do c ume n t

spoke n of above an d quote d by P e rki n s & w hich calls h i m
qu o n dam i n 13 3 6 b ut agai n st the latte r suppositio n we
”
,

have the date of the tomb of Carlo D uke of Calabria .

M aestro G A N o , a n other scholar of Agosti n o an d Agn olo ,

has left u s two rea listic specimen s of his art O n e is the .

mo n ume n t of Tom m aso d A nd r ea Bishop of P isa an d com ’

, ,

missary for P ope N icholas IV Th e deceased who died 13 03 .

, ,

is lyin g peacefully on h i s to mb two sma l l ge n ii k n eeli n g ,

at his feet a n gels gua r din g his head be n eath a G othic

,

ar ch. Th e artist has made his effigy of death a w fu l by

placin g the scroll i n the bishop s ha n d w arn in g the beholder ’
,

to recog n ise the death to which he must come an d to i m p r o v e ,

his l ife while he can G an o s other tomb that of R a n i er o .

’
,

P or r zn a i n the church of Casale n ear Sien a is just as

'

, , ,

realistic for its li fe like effi gy Ran iero sta n ds above h i s

-
.

1
M il an es i An n ot Vas ar f v ol i p 43 2 ‘ ’
. . . . .
, ,

l uscan Sc u l p t ors v ol i b o ok ii ch iv p 9 9
‘ ’
3 &
. . . . . .
, .
2 06 E A R LY ITAL I AN SC UL PT RS O .

sepulchr e dr essed i n his l u cco with h i s s w ord gi rded at

‘

, ,

his Side just as whe n h e we n t forth to fight the G uelphs i n

,

the army o f Hen ry V II He died i n 13 14 . .

A third tomb by G a n o is that of Ugo C a s a r uotz i n the

'

P i c ve of R apola n o sculptured i n 13 46 an d thought to be

, ,

h i s last work A statue which o n ce surmou n ted the mo n u

.

men t was removed from the church because the people

,

wo r shipped it as a sai n t .

A M aestro G O R o SA N
is also chro n icled as the author
E SE

of the tomb o f St Cer bon e i n the cathedral o f M assa i n

.
, ,

the M aremma which is ado rn ed with b as—reliefs an d man y

,

stat u ettes It was fi n ished i n 13 2 3

. It is n ot kn own .

whether G oro was of the school of G iova nn i Pisan o or of

that of A gosti n o an d A gn olo .

O ther Sie n ese sculptors

the time were of

C E LLIN o D I N E SE w h o assisted i n the B aptistery of Pi stoja

,
’
i n 13 3 4 an d i n 13 3 7 sculptured the tomb of Da n te s poeti c
,

f rien d M esser C i n o di P i s toj a A NT O NI O B R UN A CC IO more

, .
,

famous for his activity i n th e Sie n es e revolution s than his

artistic wo r ks though he supplied marbles for the floor of
,

the D uomo i n 13 5 6 LA N Do SA N E SE who was employed as

.
,

a gold worker by He n ry V II f rom whom he obtai n ed a

-
.
,

diploma i n 13 11 BA RTO LO M M E O DI To mmie called P izzin o

.
,
.

G I O V A NN I D I CE CC A an d M A TTE o D A M B Roe Io who carved b e ’

,

tween 13 76 an d 13 8 4 the mediocre statues which fi ll the

tabern acles of the C appella della P iazza at Sie n a L U C A DI .

G IO VA NN I who made the holy water vase i n the Duomo

,

at O rvieto ; the four artists who sculptured the fon t i n the

same church ; an d UG O LIN o D A V IE R I wh o worked the ,

beaut i ful tabern acle for the holy wafer at O rvieto in silver ,

an d smalto , i n 13 3 8 .
 were all by N i ccol o Tw o .

other statues of St L u ke .

by him— on e i n the chapel

of San B iagio i n the cathe

dral an d on e i n the
,

hospital — are i n a better

state of preservation .

A fter the year 13 8 4 ,

i n tern al wars havi n g ren

de red Arezzo un q u iet N i c ,

col o return ed to Flo r e n ce ,

where he obtai n ed the

commissio n for the Sittin g
statue of St Ill a fl c on e of
.
,

the four eva n gelists of

which three we r e assign ed
to him to D on atell o an d
, ,

N a n n i di Ban co i n 1408 ,

with the proviso that the

a r tist w h o succeeded best
shou ld make the fourth .

Th e four statu es are n ow

i n the chapels rou n d the
great t r ibu n e ; but the
light is s o imperfect that
it is difficult to di s ti n
g uis h them Th e A rte
.

della Lan a employed N i c

col o to make tw o small
figures of the Vi rgi n an d
the Angel of th e A n nun ci
a ti on above the statue of

St M atthew on O r San
.

M ichele In 13 9 0 he
.

sculptured the six roun ds

which adorn the Loggia
'
Bus -
l
re i ef b y N Icc0Lo A R ETIN o
. N or th Door wa y, Fl orence Ca th ed r al .
 N ICC O L o AR ETIN o . 2 09

d e La n zi i n 1 405
made the sepulchre of L eone A cci aj u ol i
’
an d

i n San ta M a r ia N ovella In 1407 he is n amed as master of

.

the doo r of the D uomo Th e illustration on p 9 6 is pa r t

. .

of h i s g raceful design for the o rn ame n tatio n of th e arc h .

Th e V e n eti an Se n ate w ould have e m ployed him ; but he

w as bou n d to fi n ish his w o r k at the D uomo i n Flor
e n c e a n d c ould n ot go He w en t to B olog n a ho w eve r
,
.
, ,

afte r 1410 to make the tomb of P op e A l exa nd er V

,
.

i n the co n ve n t of the F rati M i n ori F r om wa n t of .

marble an d sto n e the tomb with its e ffi gy an d reliefs was

, ,
‘
,

e n ti r ely m ade i n te r ra—cotta an d stucco It has lon g been .

re m oved to the publ i c cemete r y at the Cert o sa There a r e .

n o w o rk s by N i cco l e chro n icled later tha n this V asari .

asse r ts that he died soon after an d w as bu r ied at B ologn a in

,

1 417 but if the N iccol o d Ar ezz o who was on e of th e ’

, .

j u dges of the work of the chapel of the C i n tola at P r ato

i n 1444 w as this same m an his death could n ot have taken
, ,

place till m u c h late r 1

.

1 M il an es i , ‘
A n n ot Vas a ri ,
. v ol .
p . 13 9 n ot e.

E IS
. . .
 C HA PTE R III .

JA CO P O D EL LA Q UER CIA .

LL the before men tion ed sculptors

-
excep ted , ,

ere more or less m edi ocre an d th e Sie n es e school

,

could boas t of n o g reat ma ster afte r A gosti n o a n d A gn olo till

the ti me of G i acomo or Js copo della Querc i a who was bo rn ,

at Sie na i n 13 71 an d was the son of a gol dsmi th n amed

,
’
1
Pietr o d Ang el o di G uam i cr i della Querci a G rossa an d
M on a M addalena his w i fe Some say he was a pup il of
.

G ore other s of Lu ca di G iova n n i but fr om h is ha v i n com

,
g

p e te d f or the doors of the Baptis tery i n 1 404 it i s more ,

probable h e first learn ed hi s father s art of or eficei i a H is

’
.

ea rli est commi ssion w as given when he was qui te a youth .

It was an equestr i an sta tue of wood to w an d plas ter to , , ,

place above a wooden catafalque on the occasio n of the

fun eral of G ian Tedes co da Pi etr a M ala who di ed i n 13 9 5 at ,

O rvieto an d whose body was brou ht to Sien a to be buri ed

,
g
.

Th e statue was for mor e tha n a hun dr ed years i n the

Duomo of Sie na .

D ur ing hi s st ay i n Flore n ce he compete d for the bronz e

,

gates an d sto od h igh amon gst the others some authors assert
th at he scul p tured the M ad on na d el l a M a nd o r l a over the
n orth door of the Duomo but thi s Bal di n u cci as signs to
,

1
La Q u erci a G rossa was a vi l l age n ear Si ena . It i s n ow ex ti n ct.
2 12 E AR LY IT AL I A N SC UL P T RS O .

co n tai n i n g th e statuettes of the M ado n n a an d Ch i l d an d th e '

theological virtues These are gracefully d r aped b u t more

.
,

l ab o ured an d l es s refi n ed tha n the wo rk s of the Flore n ti n e

masters of his time Th e t w o s i d e parapets were co ve red
.

w ith reliefs f r om O l d Testame n t histo r y In the b asi n w e r e .

so m e boys r i di n g on wol v e s an d dolph i n s an d of course the

, .
,

a r ms of Sie n a Romul u s an d Remus w ith the wolf Ta k e n

,
.

as a whole Q u er cia s fo u n tai n was a beautiful work a n d

’

quite su fficie n t to have made his n ame as i n deed it d i d , ,

’
for he was called Jacopo della Fon te ever af te r Jacopo s .

as sista n ts i n the Fo n te w e r e Sa n o di M atteo an d N a n n i

di J a ee po da Lucca whom he employed to do all the m a rble
,

work except the statues an d reliefs they stipulati n g ( Jan

‘
,
.

10 1414) to fi n i s h their part i n eighte en mon ths an d

, ,

to b e paid 2 2 00lire Th e Fo n te G aia havi n g been m u ch

.
,

ru i n ed fo r yea r s was r eplaced i n its an t i que fo r m by a

,

model by a modern Sie n ese Tito Sarrocch i i n 18 5 8 18 6 6 , ,

-
.

So m e ol d fragmen ts are p reserved i n the Op er a of the

D uo m o.

In 1413 J ae e po left the Fo n t e to go to Lucca where P aolo ,

G u i n i gi lo r d of the city had called h i m to sculpture a tomb

, ,

fo r Il a r i a d el Ca r r el to h i s wife This lovely work is i n .

t h e C athedral at L u c ca an d co n sists of the e ffi gy o f Il ar ia

,

an d a relief o f child r e n carryi n g festoo n s Th e surmou n ti n g .

ca n opy w as destroyed by the mob which tu r n ed G u i n i gi

o ut of the city some twe n ty years later Th e recumbe n t .

st atue is f ree an d n atu ra l without bei n g too realistic ,

a sweet reposeful face with its braids of hair bo u n d on

,

the smooth bro w ; the han ds clasp each other loosely A .

hou n d e m ble m of con jugal fidelity lies at her feet Whilst

, ,
.

at Lucca i n 142 2 J aco po sculptured an alta r piece above the

, ,
-

tombs of F ed eri go di Tr en ta an d his w ife i n the church of

2] 4 EA R LY IT AL I A N SC UL PT RS O .

San F redia n o It is i n a flo r id style the n iches co n tai n i n g

.
,

sta tu es an d the base bei n g covered wit h reliefs

, .

It w as n ot til l 142 5 that his importan t works i n the church

of San P etro n io at B ol o g n a were beg u n at the comm issio n of
,

A r chbishop A rl i th en L egate of Bolog n a who o ff ered him 3 600

, ,

gold fl ori n s to sculpture fiftee n bas rel iefs for t h e gre at doo r -

of the chu r ch In an evil hour for his ow n peace he

.

accepted the work which though it has greatly added to

, ,

his fame was the cause of the latter years of his life bei n g
,
'

embittered by quarrels an d e n m ities on his acco un t bet w ee n

the cities of Sie n a an d B olog n a He had scarcely obtai n ed his
.

m arbl e s an d completed his desig n whe n on Feb 8 1 42 8 ,

.
, ,

he w as p er emptorily rec alled to Sie n a to fi n ish the fo n t

o f the B aptistery the r e for w hich the commissio n had bee n
,

given i n 1 417 but some del ay had occu rr ed i n obtai n i n g suit

,

able marble J a ee po replied w ith lette r s an d pro m ises but

.
,

remai n ed i n B olog n a w here he w as i n terested i n his w o rk .

His assista n ts w h o we r e lef t i n Sie n a to go on w ith the

fon t began to qua rr el about it an d the Sig n o r i a seei n g , ,

the disadva n tage o f a st u dio with an abse n t master took ,

the matter i n ha n d an d o n A ug 2 8 1 42 8 w r ote to say that

,
.
, ,

he must be i n Sie n a w ithi n ten days u n der pai n o f a fi n e of

100 fl or i n s .This b r ought him back for b is po verty re n dered ,

i t impossible to pay s u c h a fi n e an d as soo n as he reached,

Sien a the Sig n oria m ade an other decree that he w as n ot to

leave the city u n der p ai n o f a fi n e of 100 flori ms N o twi th .

stan di n g this w e fi n d h i m writi n g to B olog n a on N ov 13 .

,

142 8 p r omisi n g to retu rn thither shortly

,
He m u st have .

ca rr ied ou t his resolve for on D ec 3 h e petitio n ed the

,
.

Sig noria to absol ve him fro m the fi n e he h ad i n c u rred .

He did n ot howeve r le ave Sie n a for an y le n gth of time

, ,

till h i s b r o n ze relief of the Ca l l i ng of J oa ch i m a ve r y fi n e ,

2 10 EA R LY ITA L IAN S U C L P TO RS .

creati n g him ca va l i er e i n A ug u st but it seem s the ,

weight of his broke n compact s at B olog n a oppressed him for ,

i n M arc h 1 43 6 he writes f r om P a r ma to e xp r ess his reg r ets

, , ,

an d protest that he is ready to oblige them i n an y way It .

is thought that about this ti m e he scu l ptu r ed the m on u ‘

men t of A n toni o G a l eazz o B en ti vogli o lord of Bolog n a w h o , ,

died i n 13 45 It is i n the churc h of San G iacomo M aggiore

. .

In 143 7 the Sie n ese hav i n g agai n th eir coveted sculptor

, ,

amo n g them write to the gov e rn or of B olog n a that the work

, ,

o f San P etro n io havi n g pro ved greater than was im agi n ed they ,

beg for higher pay to J a eepo In September of th at year he .

i s allowed to go to B olog n a for on e mo n th on the co n ditio n ,

that he is to lose his s alary as Rettore of the O pera for an y

time by which he exceeds that leave of abse n ce He d i s r e .

ga r ded this an d on N ovember 7 143 7 the C ommu n e of Sie n a

, ,

w rites that great disor d ers are bei n g caused by his abs en ce

from the works of the D uomo .

On F ebruary 5 143 8 there is a deed by w hich th e

, ,

C ommu n e fi n din g Jacopo has n ot return ed because he has

,

had some weeks i l l n ess revokes i ts decree to stop his sala r y

’

, .

A t le n gth on O ctober 2 0 143 8 J ae e po wo rn ou t w it h his

, , , ,

worr ies with the cares of offic e an d the disputes of pat ro n s

, , ,

fou n d r est i n death an d was hon ou rably i n terred i n the D uomo

,

o f Sie n a . He may well have good cause to write i n on e of

his letters G od kn ows how ma n y complai n ts an d murmurs I
,
”
have to bear fr om my cou n t r ymen He left all his property .

to his brother an d sister except a le gacy to a pupil call ed Ci n o

,

di B artolo Battil ori who was accu sed after his master s dea th
, ,
’

o f the i n gratitude of havi n g stole n 8 0 0 gold fl ori n s besides ,

clothes an d jewellery fr om D ell a Q uercia s room i n B ologn a

,
’
.

Th e Sou th Ken s i n gto n M u s e u m possesses t w o terra cotta -

g r oups of the Vi r g i n a n d Ch i l d an d other origi n al works by , ,

Jacopo dell a Q uercia A rep r ese n tatio n of on e of them is

.
 . J AC O P O DE LL A Q UE R C IA . 2 17

’
gi v en i n the P o r tfoli o ( N o accompan ied by a .

m o n ogr aph o n D ell a Quercia fro m th e p en o f P r ofesso r

Sid n ey C olvi n Th e list of D ella Quercia s scholars i s a lon g
’
.

o n e an d n ot wi thout some illustrious n ames

,
.

N I CCOL A B O LOG N E SE or N i ccol a dell A rea was i n re ality

,
’

, , ,

a n ative o f B a r i who ca m e to live at B olog n a with his fat h e r

,

A n ton io . It is n o t p roved altho u gh V asa r i asse rts i t th at

, ,

he w as a pupil of J ae e po although he mi ght h a v e w o r ked

u n der him at San P etro n io He obtai n ed the n a m e of .

dell A rea from havi n g added the elabo r ate ca n opy to

’

the A r ea d i Sa n D om eni co of which N ic c ola P i san o had ,

scu l pt ur ed the sarcophagus i n the thirtee n th ce n tu r y The r e .

is a terra cotta M a d on na i n the fa cade of the P ala z zo P ubbli c o

o f B ologn a sculpt u red by h i m He m a r ried Cate ri n a d e ’
.
,

Boateri an d died i n B olog n a , M arch 2 1 495

, ,
.

PIE TRO DI M IN E LLA s on of Tommaso di M i n ella ( bo r n

,

assis te d Que r cia i n the marble pa r t of the fo n t at

Sie n a an d was architectural sculpto r o f the L oggia di San
,

P aolo he was cap o m a es tr o of O rvieto ca thed ral f r o m 1 43 1

to 143 3 a n d later held the sa m e o ffice at Sie n a H e had
, .

three brothe r s all sc ulptors an d held a ki n d of school of

, ,

desig n i n Sie n a i n 1476 i n w hich the Seven Ages of M a n

, ,

fo r t h e mosaic floor o f the D uomo was d esig n ed , .

G I O V A NNI D I STE F A N O who m ade two b ron ze a n gels abo v e

,

the altar of the D u o m o V ito di M a r co ( fl , F ra n c es c o .

di Bartolo ( 143 7 an d B a r tolo di D ome n ico

( 1 4 7 2
w ere mi n o r a r tists of his school .

Th e t w o gr eatest o f his follo w e r s were L o re n zo di P ietro

di G io v a n n i di L a n do bette r k n o w n as V E C C H IE TTA an d
, ,

M A TTE O C IV ITA L I a L uc c hese whose w o r ks al m ost r i v al

, ,

tho se o f D ella Q u erc i a an d of whom we have al r e ad y Spoke n

, .

IL V E CC IIIETIA , '
born 1412 , at Castiglio n e di V a l d orci o,
2 18 EA R LY ITA L I AN SC UL P T RS O .

n ear Sie n a was n ot o n ly sculptor but archi tect pai n ter an d

, , ,

goldsm ith .

In 1445 h e pai n ted the frescoes of the chapel which con

tai n the reli c s i n the Sac r isty o f the Hospital o f Sa n ta M a r ia
della Sca l a besides f rescoi n g the ceili n g a n d walls of the same
,

Sacristy an d i n 15 40 he bega n to f r esco the roof an d w alls

,

o f the B aptistery o f Sie n a Th e Uffi z i galle r y i n Flore n ce

.

poss ess es a tri p ti ch o f the M a d on na a nd s a i n ts by V ecchietta , ,

which very well displays his style B ut i t is p r i n cipal l y o f .

h i s w orks i n bro n ze an d sculptu r e t h at w e h ave to speak .

In 1460 he had the co m m issio n for t w o s tat ues o f St P eter .

a n d St P a u l fo r the L oggia della M e r ca n zia at Sie n a

. .

A fter his m aste rpiece o f pai n ti n g the A ss um p ti on of th e ,

Vi r gi n i n the A ltar of the Sacrame n t at P ie n za i n 1461 he , , ,

a ppea r s to ha v e t u r n ed h i s atte n tio n mo r e to metal w o rk i n g ,

but u n fo r tu n ately few sp e cime n s o f this r emai n Th e silver .

b u st or st atue of St Ca th er i n e d isappea r ed after the Siege o f

.

Sie n a i n 15 5 5 .He made three Silver statues a l so for th e

D u omo of Sie n a that o f St B erna r d i n o i n 1474— the same
,
.

yea r i n w hich that o f St Ca th er i ne was cast — on e of St P a ul

. .

i n 1 475 an d St Sebas ti a n 1 478 Th e b r o n ze recumbe n t e ffi gy

, . .

o f M a r i a n o Sozz i n o the el d er a famous j u ri con s ul t is n o w

, ,

i n the Flo r e n ti n e galle ry o f bro n zes havi n g bee n bought by ,

D uke Fe r di n a n do I I & Th e commissio n w as give n i n 146 7

at the expe n se of the city It was to be placed o n his tomb
.

i n Sa n D ome n ico Th e head an d face an d the w r i n kled

.

aged ha n ds are ext r emely life li k e but the style is hard

-

, .

In 1465 he bega n o n e of his p r i n cipal work s which

he fi n ished i n 1 472 a taber n acle of bron ze for the high
,

altar of the hospi tal of Sa n ta M aria della Scala i n Sie n a .

It is surmou n ted by a statue of the rise n Christ an d ado r n ed ,

w i t h a n gels ; it cost 165 0 l ire In 15 06 i t was re m oved to

.

t h e h igh altar of the D uomo of Sie n a where it still remai n s , .

 P AR T VI .

RE NAISSA N CE SC U P TU L RE IN E U R O PE .

C H A P TE R I .

P N
S AI .

HE Span ish school of the Re n aissa n ce was i n real ity

o n ly an offshoot f ro m the Ital ia n fo r u n til Starn i n a
,

a n d Torrigi an i we n t to Spa i n the a r t o f th at cou n t ry w as

,

e n ti r ely co n fi n ed to the d ec o ra ti v e sc ul pt u r e o f those fi n e s t

o f a rchite c ts th e M oo r s . Sta m i n a l e ft behi n d h i m the s ee d s
o f the Spa n ish school o f pai n ti n g b u t t h e sc u lp tu r e did n o t
,

take s u ch fi rm root Torr i gi an i s Ill a d om za at B u rgos t h e

.
’

fil a d o nna at Se v ille do n e for t h e D uca d A r cos a n d th e

’
, ,

St Jer om e for t h e M o n aste r y of B uo n a v i s ta dated 15 2 0

.
, ,

w e r e the fi rst wo rks of the Re n aissa n ce style i n Spai n .

In that same year a Spa n i s h artist n a m ed A L O N Z O

,

D ER R A Q UE TE w h o had go n e to Flore n ce w he n a yo u th i n
,

1 5 03 h ad bee n a schola r of M ichela n gelo an d helped him i n

, ,

t h e to m b of J u lius IL retu r n ed to his n ati v e cou n try an d

, ,

w as tak e n u n de r the pat r o n age of C harles V who n a m ed .

,

“ ”
h im sc ulptor an d pai n ter of the chambe r a n d gave him ,
 P
S A IN .

i m po r ta n t commissio n s at Toledo G ra n a d a an d V alladoli d , , .

A t Toledo h e sculptu red the thro n e of the a r chbishop w i th ,

s c e nes rep rese n ti n g the Tr a nsfigu r a ti o n Fo r th e palace w hich .

C ha rles V had e rec ted i n the A lha m b ra Ber raq u ete s c u lp

.
,

t ure d so m e fi n e h as reliefs the Tr i u m p h s of Ch a r l e

-
V in
,
s
.
,

w hic h th e empe r o r is represe n ted as Hercul e s ; an d at V alla

d ol i d he co n st r uc ted the hi gh alta r for w hi c h he recei v ed ,

4400 d u c ats His last w ork w he n he w as eighty yea r s of

.
,

age ,
w as the Tom b of Ca r d i na l Ta ver a i n th e Hospital o f
St Joh n B apt i st at Toledo
. He died i n that hospi tal i n .

15 6 1 .

G A S AR B C P E E RRA
( 1 5 2 0— 1 5 70) had also h i s a rtistic
ed uc a tio n i n I taly an d r et u r n ed to his cou nt r y with fa m e
,

a s a rc hit e ct pai n ter s c ulptor an d autho r His Book of

, , , .
‘

’
A n ato m y w as p u b lished at Ro m e i n 15 5 4 an d the ana ,

t o m i ca l stat u es he i n ve n ted w e r e mu c h used i n schools o f a r t .

He fo u n d a royal patro n i n P hi l i p IL w h o e m ployed h i m ,

i n t h e a n cie n t A l c azar at M ad r i d a n d i n the n ew palace ,

o f P a r do H is m aste r piece is co n sidered to be the sta tu e

.

o f O ur L a d y of Sol t ud e ca rv ed i n w ood for Quee n Isabella

i
,

d e l a P az which is said to ha v e bee n i n s p i r ed by a mi raculo us

,

d re am It w as v e ry exp ressive o f sor r o w a n d resig n atio n

.
,

a n d w hile i n the C o n v e n t o f t h e M i n i a i Fathers w as for

ma n y years a mi raculous image on e of the fathers ha v i n g ,

i n 16 40 published a book n arrati n g th e w o n de r s it pe r formed .

Th e statue has n o w disappeared A n other famo us w o r k .

by Bece rra was the hig h altar of the Cath ed ral o f A sto rga .
,

for which he o n ly Obtai n ed ducats out of the

expe n ded on it .

A late r Span ish a rtist was J UA N M a ur i n e: M O N TA N ES born ,

at A lcal a el Real w h o died at Seville 16 5 0 He w as a good

, .

sculptor excelli n g i n child forms an d cherubs A St D omen i c

,
-

. .
222 REN A ISSAN CE L
SC U PTURE IN E UR O PE .

scourgi n g himself an d a Cr ucifixi on by h i m are i n th e M useum

, ,

of Seville .

His pupil ALO N Z O CA N O s on o f a ca r pe n ter at G ra n ada

, ,

( 1 6 01 was a n other of the versatile artis ts of Spai n .

He was celebrated as a pai n te r as wel l as a sc u l ptor ; i n

character a seco n d C elli n i fierce hasty a n d ove rbeari n g
, , , ,

a temper which b r ought h i m m a n y adve n tures H e w a s .

patro n ised through all his es c ap ades by P hili p IV who .

,

made him a ca no n but the C h ap ter deprived him of the i l l

suited offi ce His sculpture w as chiefly carvi n g i n wood
. .

Th e Vi r gi n i n the sacristy o f G ra n ada an d o n e i n the chur c h

,

at Lebrija a r e fi ne speci m e n s o f his art which was v ery

, ,

dig n ified an d n oble W ith the death of A lo n zo C a n o

.
,

Re n aissa n ce sculpt ure i n Spai n may be said to have died

al so
.
2 24 RE NA S A I S N CE C LPTURE
S U IN E UR O PE .

flo r i d an d a little G othic h eavi n ess sometimes m arred his

,

fi gu res but his compositio n s are eloque n t an d h is facia l

, ,

expressio n ma r vellous Th e Seven Sta ti ons of th e Cr oss i n

.

the ce m etery o f St Joh n at Nuremberg are ve r y characte r istic

.

spe c i m e n s o f his style In the whole series the mothe r s .

’

love is brought very te n d erl y pro m i n e n t O ther r eliefs by .

Krafl t are the o n e over the door of the P ublic Scales at

'

N u r em be rg ( see e n gravi n g ) an d some m o n u m e n ts i n the ,

ch u rch o f St Sebald of w hich the South Ke n s i n gto n

.
,

M useum possesses casts His m aste r piece is p r ob ably the .

Sa cr a m en ta r i n m i n the C hurch of St L a w r e n ce
,
It is . .

s u pported on a G othic py r amid at th e base o f w hic h a r e ,

the k n eeli n g fig u res o f Kr a ff t himself an d two fr i e n ds an d ,

i t is ado r n ed wit h reliefs an d stat u et tes .

Kr afft s great f r ie n d P E TE R V ISC H E R the s on of He r man

’

V ischer the sculptor did as much fo r the o r n ame n t atio n of

,

N ur emberg as Kr a fft himself He tu r n ed his atte n tio n to .

c asti n g i n m etal an d became on e o f the fi n es t b r o n ze worke rs

,
.

His s on He r m an we n t to Italy an d b r ought cas ts an d desig n s ,

f ro m the n ce which may accou n t for the greater re fin eme n t

,

i n V i s ch er s later wo rk s which fo r m a li n k bet w ee n the se m i

’
,

G othic of Krafft a n d his p redecessors a n d the m ore hu m a n

i s ti c style af ter D u rer His earlier work s which have n o .
,

touch of Italia n ab o ut them are o f the same type as t h e ,

fi rs t n amed artists
-
They are the Tom b of A r ch bi s h op E r ns t
.

at M agd eb org 1 49 5 an d that o f B i s h op J oh a n n i n B reslau

, ,

C athed ral 149 6 ,

His great work the bro n ze Sh r i ne of St
.
,
.

Seba l d at N urembe r g dati n g fro m 15 08

l
,
15 19 is very fi n e
, , .

Th e archite c tu ral desig n is late G othic al m ost Roma n esque , ,

a n d i t is ado r n ed with beautif u lly executed statues a n d reliefs ,

which sho w a decided step i n adva n ce of previous artists .

1 A cas t i s i n th e South Kens i n gton M us eum .

HAS RELIEF O VE R
-
THE Doonw av or
“
THE PU BLIC SCA LES, N UR E M BE RG .

B y A da m Kr af t .

E IS
. . .
2 26 RE N A SSA
I N CE C LP TURE
S U IN E UR O PE .

There is a gr eat deal of rich orn ame n tation but so well ,

ble n ded that the cfl ect is most harmo n ious Some fi n e reliefs
'

by his han d are a Cor ona ti on of th e Vi rgi n at E r fu r t ,

C athed r al ; Ch r i s t a n d th e s i s ters of Laza r us at Ratisbo n ,

C at h e d r al ; an d a mo n ume n t to F r ederick the E lector at ,

Wi tte n bu r g
.

A fter these w h o might be c alled the foreru n n ers of the

,

Re n aissa n ce i n G e rm an y A LB E RT D URE R ( 1471— 15 2 8 ) arose

,
'

but though he did his part i n scu l ptu r e as well as i n p ai n ti n g ,

h e h ad n o g reat follo w e r s i n this b ran ch an d after his day ,

comes a bl an k i n the his t o ry Th e fin est wo rks of D ii rer s

.
’

chisel are the al tar shrin e i n the Lan dauer M o n astery r epr e ,

se n ti n g C h r i s t a s Ju d ge of th e Wor l d ; a carvi n g i n the

British M useum on dark ston e rep resen ti n g the N a m i ng of
,

St Joh n B ap ti s t ; an exquisi te bit of ivory carvi n g i n alto

.

relievo i n the Carls r uhe M useum rep r ese n ti n g the Th r ee ,

G r a ces an d a fou r th figure i n a da n ci n g attitude

, Th e forms .

a r e so co rr ect li ght an d elegan t that it is a surprise to s ee

, , ,

at the foot the mo n og ram of D ii rer w hose ge n eral style was ,

so di ff e r e n t
.

Tw o reaso n s may be su ggested fo r the break i n G erma n

art wh i ch follo w s this epoch v iz the ico n oclastic i n flue n ce
,
.

of the Reform atio n a n d th e Thi r ty Y ears War from 16 18 to

’
, ,

16 48 , with the devastation s which were its co n seque nce .

 FLAN D E RS. 2 29

B rocderl ai n executed th e pai n ti n gs These mar v ellous ex

.

a m ples of G othic sculpt ure a r e n o w i n the M use u m of D ij on .

Bru ges can also Sho w a fi n e specime n of wood ca r vi n g by -

He rma n G l os en cam p i n the c h i m n ey pi e ce of a hall i n the

,
-

A ssize C ou r ts. Th e w o rk m a n shi p is m a rv ellous it co n ta i n s

,

se v e ral stat ues of membe rs o f the ho use of B urgu n dy an d ,

p r ofus e orn ame n tatio n an d r el i efs i n the f rieze Th e story

.

g oes that the ar tist w a s co n de m n ed to death b ut

,
prayed that
he mi ght be allo w ed to exec ute a last wo rk i n his ar t His .

da ughte r assisted h i m an d the ch i m n eyl p i ece w hich was the

, ,

res u lt w on him s u ch fam e that h e obtai n ed a pa rd o n

, .

A n other wo n de rful chi m n ey pie c e of a late r date ( A D

-
.

15 2 9 ) is i n the C o u n cil C hambe r of the P alais de Justice

at B ru ges It was desig n ed by La n celot B l on d eel of B ruges
.
,

an d the lo we r portio n i n black m a r ble an d the fr ie z e we r e

c arved by G uyot de B eau gran t of M e c hli n ( A cast of this

.

w o r k m ay be see n i n the South Ken si n gto n M use u m ) .

Af te r this epoch the art of sculpt ur e la n guished i n Flan d er s

a s it did i n G erma n y .
 C H A PTE R IV .

F N RA C E .

the art of all other coun tries th e early art of F ran ce

fell u n der the i n flue n ce of the leadi n g styles Th e .

diptychs an d reliquaries i n th e Ho tel de Clu n y which da te ,

about the te n th ce n tury sho w Byzan ti n e work an d th e

, ,

bro n ze doors of Hildeshei m C athedral A D 1015 disp l ay th e

, . .
,

sel f same art as those o f P isa an d Tr oj a about the same time

-

,
.

Th e C athedrals of C hartres B u rgu n dy an d P r ove n ce are

, ,

almost ide n tical i n style to Roma n esque buildi n gs i n Italy

an d G erma n y ; so much so as to lead to the suppositio n

that foreig n workme n were employed ; an d i n fact a t , ,

A utu n whe r e the r e are so m e very weird an d spirited relie fs

,

of the L a s t J udg m en t s i m ilar to those i n the cathed r al at

,

M o n za we fi n d t h e L omba r d n ame of G i sl eb er tus as their

,

artist .

Th e C athedral of A mie n s is much later dati n g f r om the ,

thi r tee n th ce n tury an d here the in flue n ce of the school of

,

the P isan i is very visible especially i n th e beautif ully simple

,

statues of the Vi rgi n a nd A ngel G a br i el .

In the fi ftee n t h ce n tury was th e same a waken i n g of art i n

F ra n ce as i n other cou n tries .

A s pr e cursors of th e Re n aissa n ce period we may cite th e

 23 2 R ENAISSAN E C S C ULPTURE IN E UR OPE .

G oujo n
’
s stron g poi n t was i n relief where he has bee n c al led
,

the Fren ch P hidias Th e L ou vre ( Sala G ouj o n ) preser ves

.

a beautiful D ep os i ti on f r om th e Cross placed betwee n th e ,

E va ngel i s ts, also by him an d t wo groups i n ston e of

,

THE F O U N TA IN O F THE IN N oCE N r s '

. PARIS .

B y Jea n G ouj on .

N ymp h s of th e Sei ne, an d Tr i tons a nd N er eid s . Th e o n ly

relief i n marble which is k n ow n to be by his han d called Le ,

R evei l is very symbolic of the Resurrectio n

, Th e Foun ta i n .

of th e In nocen ts i n the market place of Paris is on e of his

,
-

,
 F RAN C E . 23 3

best works Jea n G o ujon was killed by a shot from an

.
.

a rquebus while carvi n g a relief on the fa c ade of the L ou v re

du ri n g the massacre of St Bartholome w .
.

A n other artist of this time was J E A N CO U SIN bo r n at

( ,

Tal us?
”

Ton s or PIERR E DE BREz E, AT RO U E N .

B y J ea n Cous i n .

Soucy 15 01, died a u n iversal gen ius pai n ter ar ch ite c t , , ,

au thor an d sculptor Th e t omb of P H IL IPP E DE C H A RO T

,
.
,

admiral of the F r e n ch fleet is said b y C icog n a r a to be the

’

maste r piece of Fre n c h sculpture i n the sixtee n th ce n tu ry .

Th e admiral armed is h alf r ecumbe n t with h i s arm resti n g ,

o n his helmet Th e figure is very fi n e but the decorati v e

.
,
23 4
: RE N AISSA NC E S U C L PTUR E IN E UR OPE .

p art of the m on ume n t is less p l easi ng I t is n ow i n the .

L ouvre . A n othe r of his celeb r ated wo rks is his t omb of

P i er r e d e B r ézé G ra n d Sen es ch a l of N or m a n d y at Roue n
, , .

C ousin was author o f a boo k o n po r t raiture .

G E RMA IN P ILO N ( 15 15 2— 15 9 0) w as less versatile but as a ,

sculptor more importa n t N ot o n ly a r e severa l o f his mi n or

.

w o r ks i n the L o u vre but the ch u r ch o f St D e n is has a ri c h

, .

collection of his fi n est mo n u m e n tal sc u lptu re Th e Lo u vre .

possesses the tomb of the cha n cellor Re n e B i rague a n d

V ale n t i n a B albian i his w ife Th e bro n ze k n eeli n g statue of
, .

the Ch a ncel l or is full of li fe an d exp r essio n H is wi fe is .

recumbe n t an d reads the Holy Scriptu r es A fi n e h as rel i e f

, .
-

be n eath this gives a striki n g co n t r ast bet w ee n life a n d d eath .

Th e t wo to m bs n o w sepa r ate w e r e o n ce u n ited t wo ge n ii

, , ,

exti n guishi n g t h eir torches sta n di n g be fo re them A n other .

w o r k o f P i lo n s i n the L ouv r e is a group of three wome n

’

either G races or Theological virtues — c r itics a r e divided i n ,

O pi n io n — they hold a golde n v ase which w as desti n ed to

,

co n tai n the hearts of He n r i I I a n d C atheri n e d e M edici ; .

’

l
there is also a good h as re i ef of P a ul p r ea ch i ng i n A th ens
-

In St D e n is the fi n est w o rk i s the tomb o f He n r i

. w hic h
i s very v igorous an d gra n d C asts of p arts of it are i n the
.

1
C rys tal P alace .

JA Q U E S Si nnxz m ( 15 904 1660) formed h i s style i n Italy-

a n d wit h L e b r u n fou n ded the A cademie des B ea u x A r ts He .

forms a l i n k bet wee n G oujo n an d P uget A bust of his i n

-
.

bro n ze is i n the Louvre .

SIM O N G U ILLAIN ( 15 8 1— 16 5 8 ) executed some stat ues of

1
Am o n g Fren ch scul pt ors w e h av e n ot n am ed J ean d e Bou l ogn e
b ec au se h e i s alrea d y m en t i on ed as G i o v an n i d a B ol ogn a a m ong t h e
,

Itali an sc ul ptors Al th ough b orn i n F r an c e h i s trai n i ng a n d work

.
,

were p u rel y Ital i an .

23 6 RE N AIS AN C E S SCU LPTURE IN O PE
E UR .

A cad e m i c studied i n Rome Th e first executed the

an d .

colossal g roup i n the Tuile r ies G arde n s the Ju ncti on of th e ,

Sei n e a nd M a r ne an d a bro n ze s tatue of the Sa one at Lyo n s

, .

Th e you n ger brother emblematized the P h one i n a b r o n ze

statue at Lyo n s Th e M us ée des M o n ume n ts F ran c ais con
.

t ai n s his statues o f L oui s X I V an d Ca r d i na l D u boi s : his

.

Hors es of M a r l g are placed at the e n tran ce of the Cha m ps

E lys ees H is s on an d n amesake took the g ra n d p r ize i n his
.

tu rn an d became Keeper of the Scul ptures i n the Lo u v r e

, .

B y him ar e the tomb of the fath er of L oui s X VI a Vi s i ta

ti on i n the chapel of V e r s ailles an d the Ap oth eos i s of St
, , .

Fr a n ci s X a v i er i n the Jes uit chu r ch at Bordeaux

,
O ther .

n ames which rose to emi n e n ce i n Fra n ce i n the eightee n th

ce n tury are Fran cesco C o n drey V i n ache B o u ch ardo n a u thor

, ,

of the B oy wi th th e G oa t i n th e L ouvre an d A da m L ambert,

, ,

w hos e P r om eth eus was m uch admired .

To the F re n ch school of the seve n tee n th ce n tu r y is due

th e rise of the D a n ish school which p r oduced Th orv al s d en
, .

Befo r e the reig n of Cha rles V ( 16 70 the D u tch .

style was the characteristic of Dan ish art ; the fi rst F r e n ch

i n flue n ce was brought i n h i s rei gn by a pai n te r Jacq u es
d A gar who became court artist at Cope n hage n an d a sculpto r
’

, , ,
’
A braham C aesar d A m o u re ux who i n 16 8 8 executed the,

equest ria n statue of the ki n g .

In the reig n s of F rederi c k IV an d Christi an V I th e . .

Fre n ch school took root i n D e n m ark Jaques Saly a .

,

Fre n ch sculptor became directo r of the n e w l y fou n d ed

,
-

A cademy of Fi n e A rts W i ed ewel t the n ext di r ector a

.
, ,

D a n e st u died u n der G uillaume Co n stou th e you nger i n

,

Pa ris before h e we n t to Ro m e w here VVi n ck el m an n w i th , ,

whom he w as i n ti m ate turn ed his mi nd to classi c art .

 F RA NCE . 23 7

Sal y s
’
c h ief pupils w ere— A W E IDE NH A U P T who became
.
,

p r ofessor of th e A cademy : a skeleto n of his w as u sed as

a model for more tha n a cen tury He studi ed i n Paris u n der
.

Au gustin P ajo u for th r ee years .

N IC H O LA S D A J O U born i n C ope n hage n worked with

, ,

Weide n haupt on the obelisk to Li ber ty i n Cope n hage n Th e .

latte r carved the fi gure of Agri cu l tu re an d D aj ou those of

,

Cour age an d P a tr i oti sm which are i n fe r ior i n m e r it

,
D aj o u
.

h as the d isti n ctio n of havi n g bee n th e master of Th or val s d en .

To the more impor tan t Fren ch sculpto r s of the eighteen th

an d n in etee n th cen turies we have gi v e n a separate chapter .
STA TU E or FRED E RICK THE G E
R A T. N
AT BERLI .

B y Ch r i s ti a n Ra nch .
2 40 O
M DE R N C UL P TO RS
S .

3 rd . spi rit of imitatio n which r ecogn i si n g M ichel

Th e ,
’
a n gelo s style as th e most gra n d yet k n o w n lost the hope of ,

o rigi n ati n g a n ythi n g higher i n a r t an d gave itself up to a ,

slavish copyi n g of li m bs an d muscles without i n spi r atio n .

Thus befo r e M ich ela n gelo s time th e scholar put his o w n soul
’
,

i n to th e k n owledge his maste r h a d tau ght him an d art rose ,

higher w ith every step Af te r him the schola r dist r ust ed h i m

.

self an d merely im itated the t e acher f alli n g at every grade

, , .

Th e sculptors o f the court of C osi m o h ad already abased

the ideal an d th o se of the Lomb ar d school follo w ed s u it :
,

B r ambilla A n n ibale Fo n ta n a an d G uglielmo d ella P o r ta

, , ,
’
a r tist o f the tomb o f P aul III i n St P et er s a r e all marked . .
,

by this same i m i tatio n though the last n amed was a fi n e,

sc u lptor .

Th r ough these six tee n th ce n t u ry artists the taste was

“
lowered u n til the style k n o w n as ba r occo w as formed ,

a n d L O R E N Z O B E RN IN I r
( bo n at N aples 15 98 died at Ro m e
, ,

beca m e its p rophe t In his w o r k we ha v e every ki n d .

of fa n tasy a st rai n i n g after elegan ce an d gr ace by mea n s

,

o f a ffectatio n yet a g r eat deal o f expressio n an d clever ha n d

,

l i n g ; but of true sculpt u r e an d cl assic fo r m n ot a j ot Those .

statues on the b r id ge of St A n gelo an d alo n g the top of the .

,
’
colo n n ade of St Peter s w ith their wi n d blo wn ga rme n ts
.
,
-

an d posturi n g attitudes are far removed fro m the calm ,

si m pli c ity an d n oble pose of the a n cie n ts Y et Bern i n i w as .

clever as show n by his Ap ol l o a nd D a p h ne i n the V illa

,

B orghese a n d the fo u n tai n i n P iazz a N avo n a

,
Th e fi rst .

is perh aps all the purer because it was a youthful work ,

executed whe n he w a s o n ly eightee n yea r s old Probably .

,

h ad Pope P aul V his great patro n possessed better taste

.
, , ,

B ern i n i would have w on less adulatio n a n d would h ave ,

improved his style He too had h is followers an d i n the

.
,
 ANTON O I O
CAN VA .

eighte en th cen tury art it was n o lon ger power of form which ,

became the sta n dard of excell e n ce but flexibility d egen eratin g ,

i n to d eli r ious a ff ectation A r t had become utterly corrupt

-
.
,

an d i ts o n ly hope co n sisted i n a n ew Re n aissan ce of the

classical spi r it .

Th e w ay was already prepared by the art wr iti n gs of

Wi n ckelman n who had lived i n Rome m an y years givi n g
, ,

hi m self to a revival of classi cal art Lessi n g secon ded him .

i n his g ran d w o rk on the Laocoo n so the atmosphere was ,

as it were read y it o n ly wan ted a v isible expo n e n t an d

, ,

“ ”
this was fou n d i n the Reform er of A r t as the Italian s ,

call him .

A N TO N IO C A N O V A the s on of a sto n e worker at Possagn o

, ,

n ear V e n ice w h o was born N ovember 1 1 75 7

,
his mother ,

was A ngela Fan toli n i a pe asa n t girl of a n eigh b ou r in g vill age

, .

Th e father P ietro died at the age of twe n ty seve n

, , A n gela -
.

m ar r ied agai n an d the boy of f o u r years ol d was left with

,

his gr an dpa r e n ts O ld P asi n o his gr an dfather was ve ry seve re

.
, ,

w ith the se n sitive boy so m uch so that he h ad freque n t ,

impulses towards suic i d e ; the g ra n dmother on the co n tra ry

spoiled him A s h e gre w olde r ho w ever he showed such
.
, ,

aptitude for ston e c u tti n g that P asi n o began to t reat him with
-

m o r e co n side r atio n a n d a d m i r i n g some of h i s early effo r ts

,

at sc u lpture t h e old m an took them to the villa of the Se n ator

G iova n n i Falier w h o was spe n din g the summer n ear P os
,

sagn o.
l He w as so pleased with the p rom i se i n t hese ca r vin gs
’
that he ad v ised the boy s bei n g placed i n the studio Of a
sc u lptor an d he wo rked fo r some time u n der G uiseppe
,

1 D ell a V it a di An ton i o Can ova da Melch ior Mi ssi ri n i oh i p 4 , , . . . .

Th i s fu ll b i ograph y of C an ov a was wri tten b y h i s i n ti m ate fri en d

of forty y ear s an d was fi rs t p ub li sh ed i n 182 4
, N o m en ti on i s m ad e .

i n i t of t h e ol d s tory of C an ov a m odelli ng a cow i n b utter .

E IS. . .
2 42 O
M DE RN SC ULPT RS O .

B er n ardi , c alled Tor retti at P ag nan o a village n ear Whe n

'

.
,

Torre tti removed to V e n ice the boy follo wed him but u n for ,

t u n atel y after t wo yea r s the master w h o was a very good ,

i n structor di ed C a n ova the n placed himself as a workma n

,
.

i n the studio Of G iovan n i Fer rari but t h e labour was so g r eat

,

an d the pay so small t h at he wa s discouraged at havi n g n o

time of his ow n H is gra n d father seei n g th is sold a littl e

.
,

po d e r e an d the 100 ducats Obtai n ed with i t served to keep

,

A n to n io for a ye ar In this way he made better te r ms wit h

.

Fe rr a r i an d obtai n ed time for his ow n improveme n t Hi s

,
. .

ki n d pat r o n Se n ator Falie r e n couraged him with a c o m

, ,

missio n for two sto n e b askets of f ruit for the stai r case o f the
P al az zo Farsetti i n V e n ice a n d he was so pleased w ith the m
,

that he bade the you n g ar tist make t w o statues of E ur i cl zce

'

an d O rp h eus for h i m This ga v e C a n o v a the opportu n ity

.

h e d es ir ed of tak i n g a studio fo r hi m sel f as F e rra r i w as old

.
,

a n d his atelie r diso r de r ly Th ese stat ues we r e so good that

.

the Se n ator G r i m a n i o r de red replicas an d whe n they were ,

exhibited the V e n etia n s m ade f es l a a n d celeb r ated O r phe u s ,

Th e you n g s cu l ptor s ca r ee r w as i n s u red

’
w ith m u s ical odes .
.

He was called i n 17 76 to m ake a po r trait bust of the D oge

.

R em er an d i n 1 778 an E s czcl ap zus for M arches e Spi n ola ;

’ ’

.
, ,

this is Spoilt as a work of art by the i n corre c t drap er y for ,

tho u gh at this time Can ova studied n ature a great deal h e as ,

yet k n ew n othi n g o f the classics .

Th e P rocu rato r Rezzo n ico n ext gave h i m a commissio n

fo r six statues Of c l assical subje c ts an d to execute these ,

Ca n o v a passed i n to a larger studio n e a r San M au ri z io on the

G ran d C an al .Un fo r tu n ately befo r e he had modelled more
,

tha n the fi r st two Ap ol l o an d D ap h n e his patro n died His

, , .

fr ie n d Falie r howeve r persuaded the P rocuratore Pisa n i to

, .

co n sole h i m with a commissio n an d Ica r us an d D aed a l us

,
2M O
M DE RN C L P TO RS
S U .

for his group but Falier spok e of h i m to the Ambassador

.

Z ul i an who w as j ust goi n g to Ro m e an d he o ffered C a n ova

, ,

a subsidy for fou r years on co nditio n that he would do

“

n othi n g i n that time but copy the a n tique This the you n g .

“
artist i n the pride of ge n ius r e fused to accept sayi n g he ,

would rather go to Rome f ree with his o wn l ittle savi n gs ,

than accept bou n ty eve n fro m his cou n t ry ha m pered by

”
rules b e thought derogatory to o ri gi n ality i n ar t Z ul i an .

was much hurt an d C a n ova on his fi rst a rr i va l i n Rome i n

,

1779 where the a m b assa d or had p r eceded him f o u n d little

, ,

e n courageme n t fr o m him He was al l eage r n ess the very

.
,

first e ve n i n g he arrived he we n t to the n ude s c h oo l a t the

”
A ccademia di F r a n cia an d spe n t the n ext d ay i n the
,

G alleries o f th e Q u iri n al an d V atica n st udyi n g i n an ecsta sy

,

the A pollo an d other a n tique gems E v e r y mo rn i n g he we n t

.

to admire the C a stor an d P ol l ux on the C apitol A pai n ter

. .

n amed Fo n tai n e acco m pa n ied h i m to Rome a n d they w ere ,

received i n the Hospi ce Of Sa n Itom ual d o .

Such good u s e ( l id Ca n ova make o f h i s ti m e tha t the

A mbassador Z ul i an restored h i m to h i s good g ra c es tO Ok ,

h i m i n to h i s o w n hous e a n d obt ai n ed f r o m t h e V e n etia n

,

Se n ate i n 178 1 a subsidy o f 3 00 d u c ats a yea r for h i m .

l i e m oreover had the plaster g roup Of Ica r us an d D ae dalus

s e n t over to Rome an d g a ve the
,
you n g a r tis t marbl e to
execute i t i n the mo r e las ti n g fo r m In 178 5 th e Th es eus
.

w as fi n ished ; this di ffe r s f r om o ther co n c e ptio n s i n that the

he r o is rep r ese n ted n ot i n actio n b ut seated on h i s m o n strous
, ,

e n emy i n triumph afte r the victory is acco m plished a tribute

“ ”
to the cl assical can o n Of repose i n sculptu re It was .

’
u n l ike both the false a r t o f mode rn Rome a n d the sc u l ptor s

o w n p r e v ious work ; the cl assic i n flue n ce had alrea d y su n k

i n to his m i n d Th e group was bought by C ou n t F r ies of

.
 A N TO N O I CAN O VA . 2 45
’

V ie n n a , an d M orgh en made
e n gravi n g of it About this an .

’
ti m e th e on e roman ce of C a n o v a s li fe happe n ed to him .

His gre atest fr ie n ds we r e G a v i n Hamilto n a Scotch art ,

c r itic w h ose i n flue n ce w as al ways good for A n to n io an d the

, ,

e n g ra v e r V olpato Th e latter h ad a lovely dau ghter n amed

.

D o m e n ica w ith w h o m Can o v a fel l d eeply i n love an d with

, ,

he r fa ther s pe r m issio n w as bet r othed to her B efore h i s

’
.

m a rri age feeli n g the gi rl s hea r t w as n ot e n ti rely his they

’

, ,

b r oke O ff th e e ngageme n t by m u tual co n se n t an d D o m en ica ,

so m e ti m e later mar ried M orgh en the e n g rave r This was .

his on e love He n e v er m a rried b ut se n t for an au n t fro m

.
,

V e n i c e to co m e an d keep ho u se for him It was a sayi n g of .

his that ma rr i age w o uld have r u i n ed h i s a r t .

Fo r t un ately he did n ot lose V ol pato s f rie n dship as well as ’

his da u g h te r s love n or yet the co m missi o n fo r the tom b of

’
,

P ope G an gan el l i ( C le m e n t X IV ) w hich V olpato had Obtai n ed .

for h i m This w as fi n ished i n 178 7 an d Cicog n ar a ( Sto r ia

.
,

“
d ella Sc ult ura ) says of it that it sho w s g ra n dly the passage
,

”
o f t r i u m pha n t a r t f r om on e epoch to a n other Th e attitude .

o f the P ope is d i g n i fied a n d th e stat ues of Tem er an ce a n d

, p
M eek ness a r e ve r y si m pl y gr cefuL A n d Z ul i an writi n g of a
,

it to V e n ice says after desc ribi n g the co m positio n

, ,
“
What
repose the th ree statues seem to have bee n s c ulptu red i n th e
pu rest e r a of G recia n a r t fo r desig n expressio n an d drapery , , .

Th e ac c esso r ies the symbols the a r chitecture are of the same

, , ,

reg u lar ity The r efore the wo r k is execrated by the M ichel

.

an gel i s ts the B er n i n i s ts the B oro m i n i te s an d M ar ch i on i te s

, , .
,

This w o r k b rought the commissio n for the tomb of P op e

Cl eme n t X III w hich was gi v e n i n 178 7 by a Roma n se n ator ,
'

A bo n dio Re zzo n ico n ephe w o f the P ope , This was n ot .

fi n ished till Easte r 1795 whe n it was u n veiled i n St P ete r s

, .
’

at the ti m e o f the E aster ceremon ies ; the light f rom the

 2 46 O
M D ERN SC UL T RS PO .

g reat cross wh ich w as illumi n ated at that time a dded greatly

, ,

to the eff ect C a n ova was so a n xious to hear w hat was said
.

that h e mi n gled i n the c ro wd i n the garb o f a mo n k a n ,

actio n whi c h he felt requi red a g reat d eal of pe n a n ce after

w ards He h ea rd a g reat ma n y spitef ul r e m a rk s f rom the
.

artists of th e Ber n i n i school but was rewarded by u n qualified ,

praise fr om P ope P ius V I himself w h o s te ppe d to look at .

,

i t While this w ork was i n ha n d he w as e n gaged on an

.

A m or i n o for Pri n cess Lugu m i sck y a seated A d on i s an d ,

Ven us w hich w as n e v er put i n to marble an d a P s ych e for

, ,

a n E n glishma n n amed B lu n d ell whi c h is ve ry p ure an d ,

d elicately modelle d A replica of this was m ade for Napo

.

leo n to give to the Quee n o f B a v a ria an d is n o w i n M u n ich , .

H is famous g ro up of C up i d a n d P s ych e recumbe n t w as

executed i n 179 3 an d is n o w i n the palace o f C ompieg n e i n
,

Fra n ce \ His reliefs o f the D ea th of P r za m A ch i l l es a nd

'

.
,

B r l s ezs Socr a tes d ea th an d Tel em a ch us date still earl ier bei n g

'
’

, , , ,

executed i n 179 0 A bo u t this ti m e bei n g called to V e n ice to

.

exec ute th e mo n u m e n t of C ardi n al A n gelo E m o P r oc u ratore ,

Of S M a r co n ow i n th e arse n al at V e n ice he paid a visit to his

.
, ,

n ative vil lage P ossag n o w he r e the peasa n try put the w hole
, ,

cou n t ry i n festal array e rec t i n g flo ral arch es st re w i n g his

, ,

road w ith flowers an d greeti n g him with village music an d ,

n ative Odes C a n ova would p ut n o p r ice on the mo n ume n t

.

to E m o so the se n ate on Septembe r 19 179 5 assig n ed him a

, , ,

pe n sio n of 100 ducats a mo n th for life an d c oi n ed a medal ,

i n h i s ho n our O n h i s retur n to Rome 1 79 5 h e bega n the

.
, ,

Venue a nd A d a m s for M a r chese Salsa de Berio a N eapolita n

'

, .

This s tatue was bough t twe n ty years l ater by M Fav r e of .

G e n e v a an d C a n ova retouched an d i m proved i t on its pass age

,

n o r th ward O f this year were the t wo charmi n g reliefs

.

called Wo rks of M er cy also those o f the D a nce of Venus a w l ,

 2 48 O
M D E RN S UC LPTO RS .

w h ich is n ow at St . . Th e n ext year saw the .

co m pletio n of the Hebe commissio n ed by V iva n te A l b ri zzi ,

o f V e n ice This statue wh ich i s rema r kabl e for ideal light

.
,

n ess an d beauty was repeated fou r times by the author on e

, ,

copy bei n g for L ord C awdor an d an other for the E mpress ,

Josephi n e In this C a n ova p r actised the G reek system of

.

softe n i n g the flesh to a differen t texture tha n the d rapery as

'

Praxiteles is said to have don e his e n emies asserted that he

“
u sed colour b u t hi s o w n words are
,
I adopt the fi l e so ,

much that I Obtai n the e ffect o f colour without the colour ” 1

.

S d
a d ays fel l o n Rome — distress an d fami n e an d Ca n ova s ’
, ,

c h aracter came out i n its b r ightest colours He v isited the .

sick an d starvi n g provided for the widows gave b read to the

, ,

child re n ; but i n 179 8 a n archy succeedi n g fami n e he left ,

Rome for a time an d retur ned home where b e amused himself ,

by pai n ti n g i n stead of chiselli n g Th e exaltatio n of Pope P ius .

V II to the papal th r o n e restored order i n Rome an d C a n ova

.
,

return ed thither whe r e he began modelli n g the Hercu l es a nd

,

L i ch a s n ow i n th e Torl on i a Palace Th e m ad n ess of Hercules

,
.
,

who wears the tu n ic of N ess us is wo n derfully re n dered , .

’
C a n ova s mother n ow a wido w the seco n d time an d his
, ,

brother G i ov a n Battista who had j ust left college at P adua , ,

retur n ed w ith him to Rome his brother n ever left him an d ,

the closest bo n d of love u n ited them for al l their l ives Th e .

year 18 00 gave bi r th to the P ers eus of w hich the modelli n g ,

is con sidered marvellously delicate Th e M ilan ese wan ted .

it but th e Pope would n ot let such a masterpiece leave

,

Rome an d he bought it for the V atica n Th e P ugzl zs l s o ne

' ’

, .
,

o f his fi n est works an d the colossal statue o f Fer d i n a n d of

,

N ap l es dates also f r om this year which was marked by n e w

, ,

h on oms Th e Pope elected h i m I n spector G e n eral of the

.
-

1 M i s si r i ni Vi ta di Can ov a
' ’
s
‘
, cap . i t . p 101
. .
 AN T O N IO CAN O VA . 240

Bel le Ar ti i n Rome w ith a pe n sio n of 400scudi a year

,

A t the same time he was called to P a r is maki n g the j ou r n ey ,

w ith all ho n ou rs Th e F r e n ch m i n iste r i n Rome gave him a

.

tra v elli n g carriage th e P ope pro v ided h i m with lette rs o f

,

i n trod u ctio n B uo n apar te r eceived h i m on the fi rst day o f his

ar r ival an d a dmitted h i m to famil iar con versatio n while the
,

a rtist modelled his head Ca n o v a made use of his op p or .

.

t un i ti es by plea d i n g with the E m pe r or agai n st his spoili n g

Hom e of all he r w orks of art an d w he n B uo n apar te talked ,

of t ra n spo r ti n g the V e n etian b r o n ze horses to P aris did n ot ,

“
fear to say Sire the s ubversio n of that Republic wo uld
, ,

affli ct me all m y life ”

O n h i s retu rn fr om P a r is he set to
.

w o r k to re fo rm th e a r t schools of Rome a n d obtai n ed f r om ,

the P ope a site fo r the n e w n ude schools It is said that h e

w as t h e fi rst to use t h e la r ge clay m o d el suppo r ted by i n ter n a l

i ro n s as it i s used at p rese n t B efo re his time models w ere

, .

mad e i n stucco of smal l d i m e n sio n s an d casts m ad e of them , ,

w hich w e r e e n la rged i n m arble by calc ulation s w hich were

ve r y i n t r icate .

In 18 05 Ca n ova h ad executed se v eral mo n um e n ts of a sad

-

desc riptio n an d by way of relief modelled the Th ree D a ncer s

, ,

which w e re repeated sever l ti mes on e was for the E mpress a

Joseph i n e In 18 09 h e w as c reated se n ator m u ch agai n st

.
,

his will an d the n ext year he h ad a seco n d call to P a ris to

,

make the bust of the Emp r ess where he ar r ived i n O ctober ,

.

M i ssi r i n i gi v es Can o v a s o w n w ritten a c co u n t o f h i s con

’

vers atio n w ith Buo n ap arte while this bust w as i n prog r ess ;
they talked classics religio n art an d eve n discu ssed the
, , ,

Pope & Th e good hea r ted Can ova t r ied to reco n cile P ope an d
E m pero r b u t N apoleo n got out of it b y oi n g i n to rhapsodies
,
c
o

about the old Roman s On e day N apoleon t ryi n g to per .

,

suade him to stay i n Fran ce said : This is th e true ce n tre , ,

250 O
M D ERN SC ULPT RS O .

here are all the masterpieces o f the a n tique wo rld the o n l y ,

o n e w a n ti n g is the F arn ese Her c ul es but we w ill h a ve a 1s o

, ,

”
that.

I pray your M aj esty to leave somethi n g to I taly These .

a n cie n t mo n ume n ts for m a chai n with others w hi c h n o o n e

” ’
can t r a n spose either fro m Rome or Naples was C a n ova s ,

d ari n g a ns wer He had his reward i n af ter years for w he n

.
, ,

i n 18 15 he i n his cha r acter of I n spector G e n eral of the B elle

, ,
-

A rti obtai n ed the decree for the restoratio n of the treasures

,

whi c h Napoleo n had tak en fro m R ome h e was se n t i n ,

pe rso n to su peri n te n d the arra n geme n ts a n d the E n glish ,

G o ver n me n t to help i n th e wo r k of j ustice placed at his

, ,

disposal fra n cs towa r ds the expe n ses of tran sport .

A t this time he crossed f r o m Paris to Lo n do n w here he was ,

w ell received by the P r i n ce R ege n t a n d C o urt an d fé te d by

th e ar tistic world his soj our n i n Lo n do n bei n g a co n ti n ual
,

triumph Th e m arbles of the P arthe n o n which h e s a w i n

.
,

the B ri tish M useum m ade a grea t impressio n on h i m

,
Th e .

groups of P ea ce a nd l Va r the recli n i n g N a i a d with Cup i d

, ,

s ound i ng a ci t/t er n W ere do n e at this time for the E n glish

,

R oyal Family .

Th e j oy i n R ome whe n C a n ova return ed beari n g her

a n cie n t treasu res back to her was i n te n se His n a nre was .

“ ”
w ri tte n by the P o pe i n the l ibro d Or o ( golde n book o f ’

the Cam pidoglio ) he w as made M arquis of Ischia an d had

, ,

a pe n sion of 3 000 scudi .

Th e s ta tue o f Wa s h i ngton for Ame rica the Venus for M r , .

Hope which di ffers a little from the on e i n the P i tti Palace

,
’
t h e colossal statue o f P i us VI i n St P eter s that still more
. .
,

colossal of Ch a r l es II] of Sp a i n n o w i n Naples the Sl eep i ng

.
, ,

E n d ym i o n an d n u nrb erl ess other nri n or wo rks a n d po r trai t

,

b us ts w ere t h e work of the fe w years follo wi n g The n he

, .
 C H AP TE R I I .

BE RTEL THO RVA LSD E N .

E R TE L THORV AL SD E N
( bor n at C ope n h age n I

N ovember 19 1770; d ied M arch 2 4 18 44) w as an

, ,

Icela n der by desce n t an d altho ugh actually the s on of a

,

wood ca rve r an d a peasa n t girl ye t w as of a n oble family

-

, ,

dati n g back to Haral d Hi l d etan d Ki n g of De n mark i n the ,

eighth ce n tury Harald fled to Icel an d from civi l w ars an d

’

.
,

settled there O ne of his d esce n da n ts Ol u f Paa of th e

.
-
, ,

t w elfth ce n tu r y w as an artistic Chieftai n himsel f a g reat

, ,

w ood carve r
-
Sagas p r aisi n g his skill still exist
. A later .

d esce n da n t n amed Thorvald G otts k al k en se n t his two so n s

, ,

to C ope n hage n a n d the you ngest who fou n d employme n t i n

, ,

the ship yards as ca r ver of fi gure heads became the father o f

- -

Ber tel Th e little blue eyed boy wh o used to go a n d chip

.

w ood In the ship yards showed such taste for carvi n g that he
-

was se n t to the Royal Academy Of fi n e arts for i n structio n

i n drawi n g t hough the good G o tts k al k h ad n o idea of h i s
,

s on risi n g above h i s o w n employme n t .

His schooli n g was n ot n eglected either but s o little ta ste ,

h ad b e for a n ythi n g but art that he was at th e same time the

du n ce of the school an d the prize wi n n er at the A cademy -
.

1 Th e m ateri al for th is sk etch is tak en from Eugen e Pl on

’
s
’
‘
Th orv al s d en .
 DE RTE L THO RVALSD EN . 25 3

Year after year he w prizes u n til at le n gt h th e gran d prize

on ,

r as ob ta i n e l an d h i s teacher
( a t avelli ng schol arship
) w , ,

A v il dgaard pe r suaded his father that B er tel would do m ore

'

than ca r ve fi gure h eads if he w e n t to Rome A m o n g his

-
.

early p rize wo r ks are L or e i n R ep ose an d a r elief of Hel i o ,

d or us for w hich he got a gold medal i n 1 79 1

,
Th e Sea s ons .

an d the Hou r s ar e a lso of this time .

O n M ay 2 0 179 6 th e you n g s culptor s ailed for N apl e s i n

, ,

th e The tis
‘
a lon g an d ti resome voy age He h ad little
,
’
.

e n e rgy a n d less k n owle dge for the captai n characte r ises him ,
”
as an ho n est boy but a l az y ras c al who would n ot be
, ,

pers u aded to study Italian or a n ythi n g else .

His best fr ie n d the arch aeologist Z ocga to w hom B ishop

, ,

M un ter had given him a let te r w r ites from Ro m e that t h e “

,

A cade m y s h o w s ve r y little ju d g m e n t i n se n di n g s u c h i gn o r a n t
you n g fello w s to Italy B u t the acc u satio n did n o t lo n g
.

hold good So m uch w as his mi n d a w a ke n ed by so m a n y

.

”
beau tiful thi n gs & to quote his ow n w o rd s that he used to ,

“
say ,
I w a s b or n on the 8 th o f M a rc h 1 79 7 ; befo r e the n ,
”
I did n ot exist A n other sayi n g of his was
. Th e s n ow ,

”
w hich I h ad i n m y eyes begi n s to m elt a w ay He depe n ded .

a great deal on the cr itical acu m e n of Z o ega an d seve ral .

,

m odels n o t approved of by h i m we r e d e st ro yed A ch i l l es .

r a i s i ng th e con q uer ed P en th es i l ea , an d B a cch us a nd A r i a d n e,

we re of this ti m e Th e l atte r w as left u n fi n ished be c ause
.

th e artist was attack e d by the i n sidio u s e n emy of his life

fever ; but a has ty c ast was take n of it an d was se n t to

C ope n hagen His first atel ie r was i n the V i a Bab v i n o an d
.
,

h ad been p r evio usly occ u pied by Flaxma n He lived i n the .

V i a Feli c e sha r i n g r oo m s w i th a G e rma n pai n te r n a m ed

,

Ko c h w ith who m he h ad made a fr ie n dship at Zocga s Th e

,
’
.

A cade m y re n ewed his pe n sio n for six years o n ly an d the ,

25 4 O
M D E RN SC UL T RS PO .

time arr ived wh en he could remai n n o lo n ge r H is Ja s o n .

stood i n his studio i n plaster but n o patro n came an d he , ,

w as s adl y pack i n g h i s tru n k s to re turn home w h e n M r .

Hope a rich ba n ker e n tered his stu d io a n d fo r thwith gave

, , ,

h i m a commissio n for J aso n i n ma rble for 000 sequi n s 1

.

From this m ome n t Th or val s d en s career w as lau n ched towa r ds

’

fame an d h ad it n ot bee n for a n u n fo r t u n ate e n ta n gle m e n t

.

w hich m arr ed h i s mo r al po itio n his pro spe c ts would h ave

s
,

bee n most e n viable His a r t n e ver stood h igher th an at

.

t h i s e poch which is m a r ked by the C up i d a nd P s ych e th e

, ,

Ven us an d the Hebe

,
Th e fi rst of t h ese is a maste r piece of
.

g race an d d elicacy ; the r e i s a m ixtu r e of G reek seve r i ty an d

n at u r a l g race w hich is a t r i u m ph o f a r t Th e Hebe is .

cha r mi n g for its si m ple mod e sty an d th e g ra cef ul c l assi c,

d rape r y Th e A d on i s m ode l led i n 18 08 b u t n ot fi n ished for

.
, ,

t w en ty yea r s is a pe r fect cl ass i c This is th e o n ly s tat u e

, .

e n tire l y th e wo rk of the a r tist ; n o h a n d but his o w n touched

eve n the m arble E v e n C a n ova f ra n k ly ad m i r ed it In
. .

18 08 he m ade the fo ur class i cal h as r eliefs fo r the p al ace -

o f C lrri s ti an sb org at C ope n h age n Ho n ou r s n ow bega n to

.

po ur O II him as fast as commis s io n s He w as made me m be r .

o f the A cademy o f St Luke i n Ro m e i n 18 0. 8 an d h ad ,

title o f Kn ight o f D a n eb r og from th e Ki n g of D e n m ar k i n

18 10 Late r h e became ho n o ra r y membe r of almost eve ry
.

ar t academy i n E u r ope an d had orde r s an d deco r atio n s f r om

,

every sove r eig n Th e I talia n s c alled h i m C a val i ers A lberto

.
,

for so they re n de red h i s n a m e B e r tel he D a n es beg an .

n o w to be p r oud of h i m a n d re c alled h i m h o m e sayi n g t h ey

, ,

had w hi te ma rble also i n N o rway ; but agai n a fort u n ate

com m issio n stopped him j ust as he w as prepa ri n g to depa r t .

N apoleo n was comi n g to Ro m e an d Th or v al s d en was called ,

1
Th e sequi n i s equal to 93 . 6d ; t h e s um was th erefore ab ou t £ 28 5 .
25 6 . O
M DERN S U C LPTO RS .

complai n ed th at he had n ot made h i s face u n happy e n ough .

O n July 14 18 19 he left home for C ope n hage n some say to

, ,

escape fr om an en gageme n t with a you n g Scotch lady He .

took h i s time however for he was feted an d called on for

, ,

works at almost every place Th e people of Lucern e orde r ed .

the famous L i on i n memory of th e Swiss who fell at the

,
'

Tuileries on A ugust 10 1 79 2 , .

’
H is r etu rn home after thi r ty years abse n ce was greeted with
a succession of ovatio n s He fou n d a palatial home awaiti n g
.

him i n the Charlotte n b erg Palace the A cademy gave him a

gra n d receptio n an d ban quet he was made C ou n sellor of State ,

an d i n v ited to the R oyal table Th e sight of the day was to .

see the scu l ptor at work an d great ladies made t h e studio

,

their lou n ge Seei n g him han dle the clay on e said to him
.
, ,

I su ppose Herr P r ofessor you do n ot d o such work yourself

, ,
”
whe n i n Rome 1
I t was here b e co n ceived the gra n d scriptural sculptures
w h ich deco r ate the F r ue Kirke o f h i s n ative city B ut h e .

would n o t stay there ; i n 1 8 2 0he return ed to Rome goi n g ,

rou n d to Warsaw where he made a bust of the E mperor

,

A lexa n de r an d an equestria n statue of Pri n ce P on i ato w sk y

, .

Whilst at V ie n n a with P r i n ce Es terhazy he heard that h i s

Roma n studio h ad falle n i n an d all his work s were rui n ed , ,

an d fled at o n ce to Rome where he fou n d several statues ,

un hurt after all O n e hu n dred an d fi fty Roma n artists gave

.

a ban quet i n ho n our of h i s return an d Pri n ce C h ristia n of ,

D e n mark was prese n t .

A bout this time Th or v al s d en while suppi n g at Sig n ora ,

’
Du ti s let her little boy look at his pistol ; the child p ull ed
,

the trigger before he h ad time to exami n e if it were loaded ,

an d shot the sculptor i n the lef t ha n d an d the side .

Fortu n ately the wo un ds were slight .

 B ERTE L THO RVA LSD EN . 2 57

In 18 2 2 b egan th e cabals amo n g Italian sc ulpto r s which

w o rr ied the D a n e for so ma n y yea r s C a r di n al C o n sal v i .

ga v e h i m the c o m missio n fo r the t o m b o f P i us V II w hich .

,

C a n o v a w ould have had if he had b e e n i n Hom e at the ti m e .

Th e employme n t o f a P r otest an t a n d fo r ei gn e r ve r y m u c h
a n n oyed the Italian s w h o fo rmed a s tr on g c abal agai n st h i m
, ,

a n d obje c ted to his w o r k b e i n g pla c ed i n St P e t e r s

’
A fte r . .

C on sal v i s death the f e eli n g ran so h i gh t h at t h e P ope L e o

’

X II w a s cal le d on as u m pire a n d n ot o n ly w as the m a u s o

.
, ,

le u m e re cted b ut the P ope e l ected the D a n e as p reside n t to

,

1
the Royal A c ademy of St L uke . .

A t this ti m e Th or val s d en had co m m issio n s pou r i n g i n o n

all sides ; but as he had se ve ral p u pils to w hom he c o n fid e d
n o t o n ly the c u tti n g i n ma r ble but the e n la r geme n t of his ,

fi r st id e as i n clay he w as n e V e r b u t o n ce k n o wn to ref use a n

,

o r de r This exceptio n was w he n the A r chd u c hess M a ria

.

L o u isa w i do w of N ap o leo n I wished him to m ake a m a u s o

, .
,
~

le um to he r s e co n d h usba n d C ou n t v o u N e i p p erg He re f used

, .
,

an d al m ost at the same t i m e ac c epted a co m m issio n fo r a

colossal b u st of N apoleo n I fr om M r A M u rray . . . .

O n M ay 1 18 3 1 the F r e n ch G o v e r n me n t p rese n ted h i m

, ,

w i t h the C ross o f th e Legi o n of Ho n o u r His fr ie n d P r i n ce .

Louis o f B ava ria had be fo r e this w i th his o w n ha n d placed

o n h i s n e c k the C r oss of Bavaria His li fe i n R o m e w as .

espe c iall y deli ghtful V e rn et M e n delssoh n Si r “f a l ter Sc ott

, , ,

Ric c i th e poe t an d a l l th e br i lli an t m en of the ti m e w e r e his

,

f r ie n ds b ut as e v e ry b ri ght li gh t h as i ts sh ad e a sad shad o w ,

was cast on Ro m e i n 18 3 7 by the epidemi c o f c hole r a Tho r .

”
v al s d e n s model fo r the gi r l d a n ci n g the Salte rello a
’

beau ti fu l gi r l w h o w as ac c o m pan ied by h er mothe r was ,

atta cked by it w hile sitti ng to him This gave him such a .

c d y afterwards s truck a gold m ed al i n h is h on our

l Th e A a em
.

E IS
. . . S
258 n on nau s currr o ns .

shock that he d etermi n ed on return i n g o n ce more to D e nma rk ,

which he reach ed i n Septembe r 18 3 8 i n t en di n g to fi n ish his ,

d ays t h ere A marv e llous pagea n t was got u p i n the bay

.

to receive h i m a n d fete follo w ed f ete fo r so m e ti m e He

,
.

fou n d his h o n ours too fatigui n g an d w ea r i ed out by o vatio n s, ,

he almost d ecided to reti r e o n ce m ore i n to the more free

a n d private li fe i n Rome much to the chag r i n o f h i s m a n y
,

a d o r ers B ut he fo u n d a quiet refuge w he n he wished i t i n

.

the house of B a r o n v on Sta m pe at M ys oc w he r e a simple ,

atelier was put up fo r h i m a n d here he modelled at the ,

B a r o n ess s request the fi n e st atue of h i m s elf a n d that of

’

Ki n g Ch r istian V III He r e also h e m ade frie n ds w ith Ha n s

.

A n derse n Still h e could n ot keep a wa y from Rome an d

.
,

whe n B a r o n v on Sta m pe an d his family we n t to It aly the

o l d sc u lptor acco m pa n ied h i m r ec e ivi n g as usual ovatio n s i n
,

e ac h G e rma n cou r t as he p ass e d Th e se r ies of be au ti ful .

reliefs from th e L i fe of Ch r i s t a n d a n e w g r oup o f th e ,

G r a ces fo r the Ki n g of W urtembu r g w e r e d o n e i n his ,

seve n ty seco n d y e ar On his retur n to D e n ma rk the lo v ely

-
.

m edallio n of A ngel s h eep i ng Ch r i s tm as i n Hea ven the la rge ,

statue of Her cu l es a n d th e m edallio n s of the G en i i the last

, ,

o f which was the G en i us of P ea ce were exec u ted , .

O n M a r ch 2 4 18 44 after d i n i n g at B ar o n v on Stam p e s
’

, , ,

Th o r val s d en w e n t to the theat r e where d e ath s u dde n ly ove r ,

t ook h i m Th e D a n es gave h i m a royal fu n eral ; h i s body

.

re sted four yea r s i n the E r u e Ki r k e whe n ce i t w as r e m ov e d ,

to th e i n te r i o r o f the M useu m where he n o w reposes wit h his

,

works arou n d h i m .

Th or v al s d en
’
cha r acter had a great d eal o f n o r th e r n
s

force ; b e had i ndomitable deter m i n atio n a n d obstacles o n l y ,

made h i m more earn es t i n overcomi n g the m He cared l it tle .

2 60 O
M DERN SC ULPT RS O .

for ho n ours an d less for social d u ties ; his letters would

accumulate for weeks u n ope n ed an d his old servan t W ilke n s
,

had to remi n d him where he was to di n e or sup .

His artistic productio n s are as to n ishi n gly n umerous ; th e

M useum of C ope n hage n con tain s 648 sp eci m e n s of his
models an d ori gi n al works .
 C HAP TE R III .

M ODERN I TA L IA N S.

HO RV AL SD EN S pupils ’
several w onw ere ma n y , an d

fame ; the best were PIE TRO TE N E RA N I n ephe w o f a ,

marble wo rker at Ca rr ara who assisted h i m i n m an y of h i s

,

fi nest wo rks ; B ISSE N who kept his i nfl ue n ce al i ve i n D en

,

m a r k an d E M IL E WO L FF w hose Wou nd ed A m a zon at E a to n

, ,

Hall a n d s ta tue of P ri n ce A lbert at O sborn e show the

, ,

excelle n ce of his style .

Tns nua s r was fo r some years th e l eader of th e Rom an

sch ool His best works are the Tom b of P i us VIII i n St
.
, .

P ete r s a fi ne h as relief of the D ep os i ti on an d a statue called

’
-

, ,

t h e A ngel f
o th e R es ur r ecti on .

G IA CO M E TTI, author of the tw o groups th e Ki ss of J ud as ,

an d an E cce Hom e w hich decorate the Sa n ta Scala i n Rome

, ,

w as also o f this schoo l .

Un fo r tu n ately w ha t imitatio n had do n e for the school

,

o f M ichelan gelo an d later s til l fo r that of B er n i n i it achieved

, ,

fo r the classical re v i v al of Ca n ova an d Th or val s d en C lassic .

ality was strai n ed till it dege n e rated i n to a cca d em i s m o as th e ,

Italia n s called i t N othi n g that was n ot strictly an d e n

. ~

ti t ely af te r the a n tique was admitted i n the academies an d ,

a r t was freezi n g i n to cold co n ve n tio n alism whe n a n e w m an , ,

 2 62 O
M D E RN SC ULPT RS O .

LO RE NZO B ARTO LIN I s on of an iro n worker at Savig nan o

,
-

— 1
n ear Flore n ce
( 1 7 7 7 waged his wa r agai n st A ccade

mismo an d followed closely by D UPRE i n itiated the n e w er

, , ,

’
Flore n ti n e n aturalistic school B ar tol i n i s best wo r ks a r e
.

Th r ee G eni i i n the E s te rhazy M useum at V ie n n a F ai th

, ,

( F i d u ci a i n D i o
) i n the Palazzo
,
Pol d i P ezzoli at M ila n an d -

the D emido ff M o n ume n t on the P iazza Serr i s tori at Flore n ce .

O ther artists of this school are

FA N E LLI author of Th e D a nce of th e Hour s ; PA MP A L O N I
, ,

who origi n ated the P r a yi ng C hi l d which i s so vulgarised i n ,

E n glan d by plaster casts as a Samuel an d the t wo la rge ,

statues of A r nolf o an d B r u nel l esco i n the P iazza d el D uomo ,

at Flore n ce .

COSTO L I scu l ptor of the G a l i l eo at the M useum of Natural

,

Histo r y F lore n ce
, .

D UP RIa a Sie n n ese educated i n F lore n ce an d famous for

‘

, , ,

his Ga i n a nd A bel i n the P itti P alace an d the fi n e h as relief

, ,
-

ove r the ce n tre door Of the fa c ade of Sa n ta C roce These .

w ere the a r tists who best kept a l ive the n aturalistic sch ool i n
its highest fo r m as i n a u g ura t ed by Bartoli n i .

Th e lat er n i n eteen th ce n t u ry I talia n s with on e or t w o ,

exceptio n s gi ve themselves u p to n aturalism which is fast

, ,

becomi n g the lowest realism .

A s cases i n poi n t let us take the R ea d i ng G i r l by M A G N I ,

o f M ilan n ow i n the Brera

,
the Fr i ne by B A R Z A G H I Jenn er ,

i n o cul a ti ng h i s Son by M O N TE VE RD E G A LLom s Fos ter

’
,

Si s ter s an d th e D i r ty B oy all o f which are i n ten sely cleve r

, , ,

but form a step i n the dow n ward road towards the crowds of
laughin g an d cryi n g an d g rimaci n g childre n a ffected girls
, , , ,

a n d u gly o l d m en w ith spectacles or pipes which fill the ,

wi n dows of the ar t sh ops i n Italy at the prese n t day .

Th e exception s to this realism are

 C HAP TE R IV .

AM E R ICA N SC U LP TO RS O F ITA LIA N SC H OO L .

TAL I A N A rt i n Italy fin ds its pu r est an d best expres

sio n i n the han ds of A merica n an d E n glish artists ;
i n deed the A merican school of the prese n t day which boas ts
-

of seve ral high class sculptors is i n real ity b ut an o ff shoot

-

o f Itali a n art differi n g o n ly i n a purer ideality

, . .

In Rome Sculptu r e has bee n adva n ced b y THO M AS C RAW

who se n t ove r to A merica f r om Hom e the
’

F O R D ( 18 13
chief figures of the mo n ume n t to Washi n gto n at Richmo n d
but he died be fo r e the whole wo r k was fi n ished an d R AN ,

D O L PH RO G E R S autho r of the bron ze doors of the C ap itol at

,

Washi n gto n co n clu d ed it

, .

E DW A R D SH E FF IE L D B A RTH O LO M E W ( 18 2 2 — 18 5 8 ) is famous
for his B l i n d Hom er l ed by h i s D a ugh ter an d the R ep en ta n t ,

E ve w hich is i n th e possessio n o f M r J Ha rr iso n O f Phila

, . .

d elphia . A la rge colle c tio n of his work s is preserved i n

Hart fo r d C o n n ecticut He fought for fame agai n st difficulties
,
.
,

be i n g colour bli n d lame an d weake n ed fr om the efi ects of

-

, ,

small pox
-
.

B E N J A M IN A KE RS ( bo r n i n M ai n e 18 2 5 ; died A
p r oli fic sculptor w h o lear n ed plaste r casti n g i n B osto n fr om
,
-

C arew h e the n took to modelli n g portrait busts an d later ,

 AM E RICAN SCU LPTO RS or ITA IAL N SCH OOL . 2 65

se ttled i n Rome where h i s art career was passed His best

,
.

w o rks are Un a a n d th e L i on D i a n a a n d E n d ym i on Is a i a h
, , ,

D i ver , and St E l i z a beth f Hu nga r y

’
Sch i l l er s .
.
o .

WILLIA M W STO RY ,
author of the w ell k n o w n Cl eop a tr a
.
-

an d Th e Si byl R A N DO L PH RO G E RS an d M iss HO SM E R r emai n

, ,

stil l i n Ro m e a n d their s t ud i e s ar e w ell wo rth visiti n g

,
.

In Flore n ce H IRAM PO W ERS ( 18 05 — 18 73 ) led the w ay by

h i s G r eeh: Sl a ve an d two statues O f E ve before an d afte r th e
, ,

Fa l l He had a peculiar facility for portraiture an d his st udio

.
, ,

no w i n the ha n ds of his son also a sculptor co n ta i n s a ve r y , ,

la rge n umber of busts .

HO RA TIO G R EE N O U G H ( 18 05 whose works are i n

th e po r tico of the C apitol i n W ashi n gto n an d on B u n ke r s
’

Hill lived also i n Flo r e n ce

,
.

O f livi g a r tists i n F lore n ce we m ay cite M r G O U LD whose

n .
,

Wes t Wi nd is v ery graceful ; M r M EA D E M r B A L L au thor . .

,

of some v ery fi n e m o n ume n tal statues a Ch r i s t R D a vi d &e , , ,

.

His s on i n l a w an d p u pil M r W C O U P E R w hose s c u lptu re is

- -

,
. .
,

o f the most refi n ed an d poeti c al style His best w orks a r e .

P s yc h e the Com i ng of Sp r i ng an d IlIo th er h ood

, M r C o upe r s, . .
’

i d eal heads i n l o w relie f are remarkably bea u ti fu l .

Th e best E n glish scu l pto rs i n Fl o r e n ce at the p rese n t

d ay are M r SA U L an d M r M A C LE A N whose Io or l e ns has
. .
, , ,

b e e n m u c h admi red i n Lo n do n He may be called the .

A l m a Tade m a of sculpt u re ; the same class ical n atu ralism

characterises the w orks of both .
 PA R T II .

L
SC U P TU RE IN O TH E R C O U N T IE S
R .

C HAP TE R I .

E N G LA N D .

F Re n aissan ce scul pt ur e i n E n lan d very l ittle exists g

.

Th e w est fr o n t o f “f e l l a C athedral i s s till covered

w ith th e remai n s of figu res sculptured i n the fi rst half of
t h e thi r tee n t h c e n tury t w e n ty years befo re Niccolo Pisa n o
,

carved th e celeb rated p ulpit i n t h e B ap tistery at P isa an d ,

forty years before th e Cathed ral Of A mie n s was built A n d .

i t is believed that th e scul pto r s at Wells were E n glishme n .

Th e mon ume n t of W alter G rey A r ch bishop of Y o r k e r ected

, ,

i n Y o r k M i n ster i n 12 5 5 is also believ ed to be by an E n glish

,

scul p tor.

“
_
In the followi n g reign E d w ard I raised sto n e c r osses
.

of mag n ifice n t architecture ador n ed with stat ue s of th e

,
” 1
departed Quee n
,
i n m emory of his beloved wife E lea n or ,

wherever her coffi n rested on its way to Westmi n ster A bb ey

1 Fl axm an '
s Lec ture on Engl i sh Sc ul p tu re .
’
2 68 O
M D ERN SC UL T RS PO .

n ote any r eal revival Th e first sculpto r of an y n ote at th is

.

ti m e t h at we k n o w of is N IC O LA S STO N E ( 15 8 6 whose
f
tomb o S F ra cis d e V e r e a n d of Si r G eo rge Hollis bo th
i r n 1
, ,

at VVes tn ri n s ter A bbey display lea n i ngs to w ards higher ar t

, .

Th e fi rs t real a r tist of the E n glish school w as G RIN LIN G

G IBB O N S ( 1648 whose wo n de r ful w ood car v i n gs a r e -

the p r ide of IVi rrd s or C astle B u r leigh a n d C hatswo rth , , .

Th e ca r vi n g i n the choir of St Paul s is also by him

’
. .

C A IU S G A B R IE L C IBB E R although he lived an d worked i n

,

Lo n do n w as n ot really of the B ritish school but Dan ish

, , .

His stat u es of R a gi ng an d M el a n ch ol y M a d ness at B ethlehe m

Hospital are really appalli n g i n their force of co n ceptio n .

JO SE PH W ILTO N author of the very florid tomb of G e n eral

,

W o lfe i n Westmi n ster Abbey was me r ely a fo r eru n n er o f the

,

school w h ich B a n ks an d Flax m an carried to a cer tai n pe r fe c ti o n .

J O HN BA C O N ( 1740— 17 though a good po r t rait sc ulp

to r as h i s Joh n Howa r d an d D r Joh ns on i n Westmi n s ter
,
.

A bbey show w on an ephemeral fame by m odelli n g the chi n a

,

shephe rdesses which beca m e the fa shio n i n his day .

TH O M A S B A N KS ( b o r n at L ambeth 1 73 5 ; d ied 18 05 ) l e d
the w ay for Flax m a n an d might be cal led th e father of
,

E n glish i deal sc ulpture He w as app r e n ticed to a wood

.

c a r v er but afte r w a r ds e n tered as a stude n t i n th e Royal

,

A cademy a n d obtai n ed the gold medal which e n abled him ,

to go to Rom e for three yea r s Here he studied the a n tiqu e .

,

w hich h ad a g r eat i n flue n ce on his style ; but E n g l a n d w as

n ot e t r ipe t o app r eciate it for faili ng to be employed
y ,

the r e he w e n t to R u ssia whe r e h e re m ai n ed for t wo years

, .

C ath e r i n e II bought his Cup i d ca tch i ng a bu tterfly an d

.
,

1
It is c ert ai n th at th is fin e m on u m en t i s b y Sto n e wh o w as
n ot ,

b u t t w en t y t w o y ars O f age w h en Si r Fra n cis Ve re di e d

-
e Th re i s a . e

cas t o f i t i n th e Sou th Ken s i ngton M use um .

 E N GLAN D .
2 60

Ca r a cta cus bef ore C l a ud i us , a fi n e h as -

relie f . Th e hall of
the B r itish I n stitutio n has a fi n e model of A ch i l l es m ou r ni ng
f or B r i s ei s. He lived before his age an d his li fe w as f u ll
,

of d i s ap p oi n trrren ts all his poetical i n spira tio n s bei n g chilled

,

by n on app r eciatio n
-

His con tempo ra r y JO SE PH N O LLE KE N S ( 1 73 7

,
w as
wiser i n his ge n e r ati o n a nd co n fi n ed his sc ulptu re e n ti rely
,

to po r t rait b usts which B a n ks despised His st udio beca m e

, .

the fashio n an d as bo th he an d his w i fe M a r y VVe l cl r w e r e

, , ,

eco n o m ical souls he amassed a p r i n c ely fortu n e by the th o u

,

sa n d busts w hich his biographer asserts he execut e d \Vh at .

Ba n ks had failed i n attempti n g ,

J O HN F LA X MA N ( bo rn at Y o rk July 6 175 5 ) a c hieve d i e he , ,

. .

b rou ght the classical s pi r it i n to E nglish a r t a nd fo un ded the ,

schools Of the n i n etee n th ce n tu ry His fathe r had a plaste r

.

cast shop i n L o n don so that the boy s ea r liest t h o ughts were

,
’

turn ed to sc ulptur e He bega n m odelli n g whe n v e ry you n g

.
,

a n d gai n ed a prize w he n o n ly eleve n an d a half yea r s old at

fourtee n he was admitted to the Royal A c ade m y It was .

n o t till afte r his ma r riage to M iss D e n ma n that he w as able

to go to Italy i n 178 7 where they remai n ed seve n years

, .

Th e same i n fl ue n ces that formed C a n ova a n d Th orval s d e n

had an e ff ect o n him : the beautifu l G reek statues w hich
were bein g discove r ed i n Rome an d P o m peii an d exci ted ,

VVi n ckl e m an n an d Less i n g to their writi n gs created also i n ,

Flaxman a deep appreciatio n of seve r e si m pli c ity an d t r ue

for m His model of the Sh i el d of A ch i l l es tak e n fr o m
.
,
’
Homer s descriptio n is a complete poem i n relie f His fi n est
, .

w o r ks are the Fury of A th a m as do n e for L ord B r istol ; the

,

Cep h a l us a nd A u r or a bought by M r Hope i n Rome ; the

, .

St M i ch a el a n d Sa ta n an d Ap ol l o which w ere commissio n ed

.
, ,

by the E arl of E gremo n t an d the friezes of the fr on t O f

,
2 7; O
M DE RN s e ULPTO Rs .

varied ; h e d rew f r om pri n ts i n shop w i n dows whe n q u ite

a child was s u c c essively appre n ticed to a cabi n et maker a
,
-
,

wood ca r v e r a n d a ma rble cutter He w e n t to Lo n don a s a

-

,
-
.

M O TH E R AN D HE R CHILD .

B us -

f
r el i e on a Tomb . B y J oh n G i bs on .

portrait sculptor i n 18 17 an d i n the same year fou n d mean s

,

to go to Rome Th e Duke of Devon shire gave him his first

 E NG LAN D .
2 73

commission for M a r s a nd Cup i d On his return to Liverpool .

with the statue o f M r Huskisso n i n 18 44 he was received .

with e n thusiasm an d was i n v i ted to W i n dsor where he made

, ,

the statue of the Q uee n He was well k n ow n an d loved i n .

Rome for his ge n ial ki n d n ess an d simple good n ess Th e .

bo n d bet wee n h i m an d M iss Harriett Hos m e r his o n ly pupil , ,

was v ery si n ce re He was dreadf ully abse n t mi n ded an d

.
-

th e artists who met at the Gaff e G reco always fou n ded their
” ’
most amusi ng stories on G ibson s last .

His fi n est wo rks are P s ych e bor n e by Z ep h yrs at the Tor ,

lo n ia P alace Ro m e ; the N a r ci ss us of the Royal A cademy

, ,

L o n don ; Hyl as su rp r i s ed Natio n al G allery Lo n don ; the , ,

Hunter a n d h i s D og an d se v e ral portrait statues He also

, .

execute d ma n y b aa reliefs for the decoratio n of to m bs G ibso n

-
.

h ad almost wrecked the purity o f sculptu r e by his i n trod uctio n

“ ”
of colour i n statuary ; but fortu n ately the ti n ted V e n us ,

w hich made the poi n t of discussio n at the E xhibitio n of

18 6 2 was n e v er repeated
, .

JO HN H FO L E Y ( born i n D ublin 18 18 died 18 75 ) was

.
,

celeb rated fo r his portrait statues an d a few ideal groups ,

such as Th e Youth a t th e Str ea m Ino a nd B a cch us , ,

Ca r a cta cus an d others He was made an Academician i n 18 5 8

,
. .

O ther E nglish a r tists are P ATRIC K MA CD OWE LL author of ,

the G i r l R ea d i ng i n the Royal A cademy E xhibitio n of 18 3 7 ,

a n d E u r op e on th e A lbert M emo r ial ; W ILLIA M B E HN E S ,

portrait scul ptor ; A L FR E D STEVE N S the author of the fi n est ,

w o r k of decorative sculpture i n E n gla n d— Th e l lIon u rnen t of

th e D uke of Wel l i ngton i n St P aul s ; J O HN TH O M S who
’

A , .
,

with great success combi n ed sculptu r e w ith architecture as ,

i n the n e w Houses of P arliame n t B esides these were .

,

B EN J AM IN SP E N C E THO RN YCR O PT L O U G H N O BLE TH EE D

, , , , ,

P H ILIP an d E B STE PH E N S who all attai n ed fame

. .
,
.

E IS. . .
AM A Z O N . N
B ERLI MUSE U M .

B y A ugu st Ki ss .
£76 R
M O D E N SC ULPT RS O .

His statues we r e n early al l portraits b ut amo n g them are ,

some of the fi n e st moder n wo rks such as the statue of ,

Q ueen L ou i s a at C h arl otten b org an d those o f Fr ed er i ck th e

,

G r ea t B il l o
, an d G ener a l Sch a r nh or s t at B erli n ; the ,

B l uch er of Breslau an d D ii r er at N ur e m b urg are th e most

, ,

A R IA D NE . Ar FR Ae onr .

. By D a n n eckcr .

characteri stic He h ad the tale n t of en n obli n g the form

.

while preservi n g the like n ess w hich re n d ers h i s m o n ume n ts

,

extremely artistic Fr om his school e m an ated

.

ERN E ST RIETCHE L ( 18 04 IS6O) who executed the fi n e

'

,
2 78
‘
M O D ERN C L PTO RS
S U .

s tatue of Ki ng Fr i ed ri c h Augus t of Saxon y at D res de n whe n , ,

o n ly twe n ty se ve n yea r s of age His statu e s of L uth er at

-
.

W orms Less i ng a t Bru n s w ic k an d Sch i l l er a nd G oethe at

, ,

VVei m ar are ve r y good

, Th e best of h i s ideal wo rks is the
.

P i etd i n the F rie d e n skirche at Sa n s Souci

, .

F R IE DRIC H D RAKE ( born i n Waldeck author of th e ,

eight colossal statues i n the R o yal Palace at B e rli n H is .

equest r ia n statue of Ki ng Wi l l i a m of P r ussi a w on the gra n d

“

prize at the Paris E xhibitio n of 18 67 A fi n e Wa r r i or

”
.

cr own ed by Vi ctor y adorn s the Palace bridge at B e rli n .

E M IL WO L F of B erli n ( 18 02 author of several

’
public m o n ume n ts w as also of Rauch s sch ool
,
.

L U DW IG SC HWA N THA LE R ( 18 02— 18 48 ) w as an artist of

m uch power His sc u lptures a r e ful l of e n ergy an d Imagi n
.

atio n an d are chiefly m ythical subjects

,
Th e ty m pa n u m .

of the pedime n t of the Walhalla at Rege n sbu rg ( see en

g r avi n g ) shows the great n ess o f his power His coloss al .

figure o f B a var i a an d h i s statues of Ti l l y an d l Vr ed e at ,

M u n ich are amon g his best wo r ks

, .

A U G U ST KISS ( 18 02 — 18 65 ) w on h i s fame by the Am azon

s tr uggl i ng wi th a L i oness w h ich was i n the L o n do n E x h i
,

bitiou of 18 5 1 a n d n o w i n B e r li n (s ee p
, His St . .

li i c/i a el a nd th e D r agon an d Fr ed er i ck th e G r ea t are also

'

.Z
fi n e works of art .

E R N E ST VO N BA N D E L ( 18 00— 18 76 ) is celeb rated for his

colossal figure of Ar mi ni us — 45 feet high — which stan ds on
a pedestal of sto n e 9 0 feet high on the top of the G rote n ,

berg n ear D etmold

, .
 O
M DE RN SC ULP TORS .

wen t to R ome i n 178 4 after w i n n i n g the gran d prize at

,

Paris One could n ot live five years i n Rome at th at time

.

without follo wi n g the un iversal e n th u siasm f or the an tique ,

an d Ch an d et s s tatues of P eace i n the Tuileries his w d ip us

’ '

, ,

STA T UE or VO LTA IR E . IN TII E THEATR E FR AN Q A IS

By Hou d on .

an d th erelief of the Fi ne A r ts i n th e M us ée Nap ol con all ’

s h ow the i n flue n ce of the Roman artis tic atmosphere i n

’
C a n ova s time .
 F RA NC E . 28 1

JO E PH
S F R AN COIS BO SIO (bo rn i n M o n aco 1769 ; died
18 45 ) w as fi rs t a pupi l of A ugusti n P aj ou a n d w as ,

a uthor of several of the sculptures i n the P alais Royal an d

Luxembou rg b ut he fel l u n de r the prevaili n g i n fl ue n ce an d
, ,

tur n ed to classic a r t as his model Some of the reliefs of the .

co l u m n i n the P lace V e n d 6m e were by him the othe rs bei n g the ,

w ork o f B e r geret There is a good bro n ze g roup of Her cul es

.

s tr uggl i ng u i th a s erp en t i n the Tuile r ies G a r de n s

. an d a ,

Hya c i nth an d N ymp h i n t h e Luxembou rg G alle r y Th e .

A rch of th e P lace d u Car r ousel su r mou n ted by a quadri ga

is by h i m He w as e n gaged on the M o n ume n t of Louis
.

X V I a n d w as so much esteemed that the C ross of the

.
,

Legio n of Ho n our a n d the O r der of St M ichael were give n .

to h i m .

C H A RL ES M E RCIE R D U PA TY ( bor n i n B ordeaux 1771 died

18 2 5 ) was i n tu r n la w ye r pai n ter dragoo n a n d at last
, , ,

sculp to r H is ch ef d ac a r r e is an Aj a x p i n i oned by N ep tune

.
’
.

He assisted i n the tomb of th e D uc de Ber r i an d m ade the ,

stat u e O f the Vi rgi n i n the church of St G ermai n des P res . .

J E AN P IE RRE C O RTO T ( 178 7— 18 43 ) was the a rtist of th e

group of h l a r i e A nto i nette s up p o r ted by R el i gi o n i n th e ,

C hapelle E x p i ato r e an d the N a poleo n ic reliefs on the A r c

,

d Etoi l e
’
.

FRA N Q O IS R U DE of D ij o n ( 178 5 — 18 5 5 ) is the typical Fre n ch

artist .F ull of force an d passio n he is also f u ll of ex ag ,

e r at i on s w hich det r a c t fro m the repose n ecessary to t r ue

g
sc ulp tu re Th e high relief of the l lIa rsei l l a i se o n the A rc
.
'

d Eto il e is characte r istic of both his faults an d vi r tues Th e

’
.

fi gu r e of B el l on a is especially overstrai n ed His M er cur y .

an d N eap ol i ta n Fi s h er m en i n the L ouv re a r e pe r haps h i s

happiest w orks Th e Joa n of Ar c forme rly i n the L uxem

.
~

bou rg G arde n s is also a good figu re .

28 2 M O D E RN S U C LPTO RS .

J A ME S P RA D IE R of G en eva ( 179 2 — 18 5 2) was celebrated

for his statues an d statuettes of fe m ale figures His P h r yne .
,

P s ych e A ta l a n ta an d N i obe g r oup are amon g his best work s

, ,
.

PIE RR E JE AN D AVID ( bor n i n An gers 178 9 ? died

’
was called David d An gers to disti n guish him f ro m his f rien d
an d teacher David the pai n te r He we n t to Rome i n 18 11
, .
,

a n d o n his retur n had n umerous commissio n s for portrait

statues an d busts O f the former the chief are those to

.
,

M a d a m e d e Stael Ta l m a at the Th eatre Fra n c ais colossal

'

Ki ng R ené at Ai x Fen el on at C ambray an d Cond e at

’

V ersailles He executed also the spirited scul p t ures on the

.

Ped imen t of the P a n theo n of P a r is .

A N TO IN E B A RY E ( 179 5 — 18 75 ) a n d FRE MIE T were remark

able for sculptures Of a n imals Th e Ja gua r d evour i ng a .

Ha r e an d the Li on an d th e B oa of th e former are especially

, ,

worth y of me n tion .

JEA N B A P TISTE CA RPE A Ux of V ale n cie nn es ( 18 2 7— 18 75 )

w as the sculptor of the well k n ow n statues on the New O pera -

Ho use i n P aris He w as also celebrated for his port rait busts

. .

O ther a r tis ts of the Fre n c h school worthy

otice a r e of n

CH
'

A RL S FO YA TIE R au th or o f Sp a r ta cus
E i n the Tu ileries ;
, ,

A IM E M ILLE T whose B ac ch a n te attracted admi r atio n at the

,

E x h ibitio n of 18 5 1 ; A M EDEE D U RA N D sculptor of th e ,

R el i g i on on the tomb of the D u e d E n gh i en at V in ce n n es

’
.

with JE A N P E RRA UD B G U ILL A U M E G A BRIEL TH O M A S an d

,
.
, ,

P A U L D U BO IS who had wo rks i n the P aris E xhibitio n

,

of 18 67 .
284 M O D ER N C LPTO RS
S U .

to n ed sto n e for stat ues an d frie z es He r g reate s t hopes for ideal

.

o r poetic sculpt u re lie i n raisi n g the to n e o f the public to its

high appreciation an d this can o n ly be do n e by a r tists the m

,

s elves refusi n g a s a mere mea n s o f livi n g to pa n der to the

, ,

lo w er tastes of the multitude A risi n g a r t m ust be a tea ch er

.
,

a decli n i n g one h as hitherto al ways bee n a s e r va n t to the

taste of i ts patro n s .
 INDEX TO NAMES 0F SCULPTORS .

AG NE LL I, liel m o Fra G ug Ci v i ta l i , Matteo

A gos t i n o an d Agn o l o C Iv i tal i , N i ccol O
A k ers Benj am i n
,
C ol o m bo , M ic h e l
A l b an i Ce n san i
A m b rogi o Matteo d ,
’
Co rton a, Urb i n o d a
A mm an at i C ort o t
A n d Ie a Ricci o C os m ati , Th e
A n te l am i o f Par m a C os to l i
A re t i n o N icc ol o
,
C o ud rey, Fra n cesc o
A rn ol fo d el Ca m b i o C ous i n J ean
Co u s to n G u ill a u m e
,

A u s ti n William
, ,

BA CO N J
C o u s t on N ic o l as,
,

Ba erz , Jae u es d e
.

C oys vox A n toi n e

e ,

C ozz a r el l i G i ac om o d i
Ba il E ,

Ba ] ucci o d I Pi sa
.

C rawfo rd T , .

B and el , Er nes t v on D A J O U N ic ol as,

Ban di n elli Dan n e c k e r

Ban k s , T Dan t i V i n cen z i o
Da vid P J
.
,

Ba rt h ol o m ew, E S . .
, . .

Bartoli n i D l Tass o F a m il y o f
e ,

Ba r tol omm eo di To m m e
'

Des id eri o d a Se tt i gn a no
Baruzz i Do n a te ll o
B arye Dra k e Fri ed ric h
,

Barzagh i Du b o i s P a u l
Be cerra, as p ar G ,

Ducci o A go s ti n o d a
,
Beh n es D u p a ty
Berraq u ete, A lonz o D
B ertold o di i o v an n i G D uran d
B i ssen D l l l e l , A l b r ec h t
‘ ‘

B os i o
Bo uc h ard on N
FA E LLI
Bou teill er, ea n J Fedi
Bri os c h i , A n drea Fl axm an
Bru nacci o Fol ey, J o h n
B r un ell es c o, Fili ppo Foya ti ers
B uo na n oti
G A LLO R I
C A M A IN O Ti n d a o G M tr
a no , ae s o

Gh ib r i B
,

Ca m b i o A rn ol fo d el e t uo n aecors o
G h i b ti L r
, ,

C a n e A l o nz o er o enzo

G h i b ti V i t ri
, ,

C an ov a A n t on i o er t o o
Gi c m t i
, ,

C arpea ux t
C ec ca G i ov an n i d I
a o e

G i b b G i li g
ons , r n n

G ib J h
,

C h an try Si r F so n , o n
G i rgi Fm
.
,

C h aud e t di
C i b ber C G ab ri el
o o, I Iees eo

, . .
Gi v i d B l g
o an n a o o na
286 N
I D X E .

G ir rd F r c i
a on , an o s 23 5 Rei tch el
Gr S o o,
’

an e se 2 06 Ri n aldi
G j Jou o n , ea n 23 1 Rob b i a, D ell a , am il y F
G gh H r t i
reen o u o a o 2 65 Ro ss elli n i , Th e
G gli l m di I p k
,

Ro ss i , V i n cen z i o d e
’
u e o ns ru c 13
G gli l m di M d
u e o o en a Rov ezzan o, B en ed etto d a
G ill i Si m
u a n, on 2 3 4 Ru d e
G ill m J B pti t
u au e, ean a s e 282
HO U O N D 2 79 San all o , G i uli an o d a G
J A CO RE I LO of V en ic e 2 02
San es e, o ro G
San es e, L an d o
.

J t J
us e, can 23 1
San sovi n o
KISS A u gust 2 78 Sarraz i n
G
,

Kra fl t A d am Sch ad o w, J
'

, . .

Sch u fl er , Seb ald

'

LA M BE RT, Ad am
G
'

Lou gh J Sc h wan th al er
G
. .
,

Luc a di i ov an n i Se tt i gn an o, Des id eri o d a

Si e n a, E arl y M as ters of
M AC DO WE LL, Pat i i ck Sl uter, C l au x
M agn i Sp en c e, B
M aj an i , Th e
.

St e ph en s, E B
M art i n ez J uan
. .

,
Ste ven s , A l fr e d
M ich el an gel o Ston e, N ic ol as
M i eh el oz zi Story, W W
M ill et A i m e
. .

M i n ella Pi etro di
,
Syrl i n , org J
,

M i no d a F i es ol e TA D O LIN I
M os ch i no, F ra n ces c o Ten eran i , Pi etro

NA NN
I di An ton i o
Te x i er, ean J
Th eed , Willi a m
N ese, C elli no di
N icc ol a, B ol ogn es e
Th om as , ab ri elG
N o b l e M at th ew 2 73
Th om as , oh n J
,
Th om ycr o ft
N oll ek en s
Th or v al s d en
P AJ O U Aug ust in ,
2 79 Ti n o d a C a m arno
P aol o o f Ven ice Tor el , Willi am
P e r rau d , J e an -
Josep h To rr igi an o
P h ili p Trib ol o
Pil on G erm a in ,
H
V E C C IETTA , Il
Pi san ell o V ell an o d a P ad ua
Pi san o An drea V errocc h i o
Pisa n o G i ovan n i
,

,
Ves p ucci
Pi sa n o N iccol a ,
V i eri , Ugoli n o d a
Pi san o N i n o ,
V i s c h er , P et er
P oll aj uo l o V i t tor e Pi s an o
P o wers Hira m ,
Vou s on n e , C l aux d e
l rad i er
’

P uget Pi erre ,
WE ID E N IIA UPT , A .

VVes tm a cot t , Si r R
Q U E RC IA J ac op o dell a
.

,
NVi ed ewel t
RAUC II, C . 2 75 Wil ton , J .

Ra vi , e an J Wol ff ,
E m il e