- Young Triton on a Dolphin blowing a conch
- Enlarge image
Young Triton on a Dolphin blowing a conch
- Object:
Statuette
- Place of origin:
Italy (possibly , made)
Padua (possibly, made)
Venice (possibly, made) - Date:
ca. 1500-1550 (made)
- Materials and Techniques:
Bronze
- Credit Line:
Salting Bequest
- Museum number:
A.124-1910
- Gallery location:
In Storage
This statuette representing a young Triton is possibly made by Franceso Fanelli, in the first half of the 16th century.
The little Triton, who has a fawn's tail and legs terminating in fish tails, bestrides a fantastically formed dolphin.
Triton is a sea-god. He was usually thought to be the son of Poseidon, the god of the sea and Amphritete, the goddess of the sea. A daughter, Pallas, was attributed to him. Usually he is represented with a human upper body and a tail of a fish.
Franceso Fanelli (1577- ca. 1641) was first documented in Genoa in 1608, where, until about 1631, he produced religious works in marble, silver, ivory and bronze. By 1635, he was working at the English court. Although he described himself 'sculptor to the King of Great Britain', it is unclear whether this title was officially conferred. The V&A owns versions of several small bronzes by 'ffrancisco the one-eyed Italian' listed in an inventory of Whitehall Palace in 1639. George Vertue stated that Fanelli 'lv'd and dyd in England'; he is last documented in 1641 and believed to have died soon after.
