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Putto with fruit

Statuette
ca. 1600-1625 (made)
Artist/Maker
Place of origin

This is a figure from a bronze candelabrum depicting a putto with fruit. It is made in the style of Niccolò Roccatagliata in Venice in about 1600-1625.
Relatively little is known about Roggatagliata (ca. 1560-1633/1636). He received his early training from Agostino Groppo, to whom he was apprenticed for nine years in 1571, and he was later an assistant to Agostino’s son, Cesare. He subsequently moved, possibly with his master, from his native Genoa to Venice, where he is first documented in 1593, when Cesare Groppo’s models were bequeathed to him. Numerous functional bronzes have been attributed to Roccatagliata, particularly those incorporating a particular type of putto, which has come to characterize his style. He also made twenty-two sconces in 1593 for San Giorgio Maggiore in Venice and also the candelabra in the same church. His workshop produced a variety of functional bronzes that may have well continued in production long after the death of the master and his son Sebastian. However, we still know nothing about the location of the foundry itself.


Object details

Categories
Object type
TitlePutto with fruit (generic title)
Materials and techniques
Bronze. Quaternary alloy with antimony, nickel, and possibly silver.
Brief description
Statuette, from a candelabrum, bronze, depicting a putto with fruit, style of Nicolò Roccatagliata, Italy (Venice), ca. 1600-1625
Physical description
Bronze statuette of a putto with fruit. He stands on his right foot on a hemispherical base, his left foot slightly raised, naked; in his arms he holds a bunch of fruit and leaves.
Dimensions
  • Height: 21.5cm
  • Width: 5cm
  • Weight: 1,004.9g
Credit line
Salting Bequest
Object history
From the Salting bequest in 1910.
Subjects depicted
Summary
This is a figure from a bronze candelabrum depicting a putto with fruit. It is made in the style of Niccolò Roccatagliata in Venice in about 1600-1625.
Relatively little is known about Roggatagliata (ca. 1560-1633/1636). He received his early training from Agostino Groppo, to whom he was apprenticed for nine years in 1571, and he was later an assistant to Agostino’s son, Cesare. He subsequently moved, possibly with his master, from his native Genoa to Venice, where he is first documented in 1593, when Cesare Groppo’s models were bequeathed to him. Numerous functional bronzes have been attributed to Roccatagliata, particularly those incorporating a particular type of putto, which has come to characterize his style. He also made twenty-two sconces in 1593 for San Giorgio Maggiore in Venice and also the candelabra in the same church. His workshop produced a variety of functional bronzes that may have well continued in production long after the death of the master and his son Sebastian. However, we still know nothing about the location of the foundry itself.
Bibliographic references
  • 'Salting Bequest (A. 70 to A. 1029-1910) / Murray Bequest (A. 1030 to A. 1096-1910)'. In: List of Works of Art Acquired by the Victoria and Albert Museum (Department of Architecture and Sculpture). London: Printed under the Authority of his Majesty's Stationery Office, by Eyre and Spottiswoode, Limited, East Harding Street, EC, p. 7
  • Motture, Peta. “The Production of Firedogs in Renaissance Venice”, in: Motture, Peta (ed.), Large Bronzes in the Renaissance, National Gallery of Art, Washington, 2003, pp. 276-307 pp. 288, 297, ill. 295
  • Motture, Peta. “The Production of Firedogs in Renaissance Venice”, in: Motture, Peta (ed.), Large Bronzes in the Renaissance, National Gallery of Art, Washington, 2003, pp. 276-307
Collection
Accession number
A.106-1910

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Record createdOctober 21, 2004
Record URL
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