Pope Alexander VIII thumbnail 1
Pope Alexander VIII thumbnail 2
Not currently on display at the V&A

Pope Alexander VIII

Bust
ca. 1690 (made)
Artist/Maker
Domenico Guidi (sculptor)
Place of origin
Italy (made)

This papal bust is ascribed to the sculptor Domenico Guidi and made in Italy ca. 1690.
It represents Pope Alexander VIII (Pietro Ottoboni, who was Pope from 1689-91).

Papal busts of this type were regularly made in the Vatican "fonderia". Other versions of this exist in bronze (Rome, private collection) and terracotta (Los Angeles County Museum).

Domenico Guidi was a pupil of Alessandro Algardi (1595-1654), one of the leading Baroque sculptors in Rome.


Object details

Categories
Sculpture
Christianity
Portraits
Object type
Bust
TitlePope Alexander VIII
Materials and techniques
Bronze
Bronze
Brief description
Bust of Pope Alexander VIII (Pietro Ottoboni), bronze, Italian, ca.1690
Physical description
Bust in bronze. He is wearing the mozetto (or capuccio) round his shoulders and a stola embroidered with figures of St. Peter and St. Paul, double eagles, and the papal keys and tiara. The pope's head is turned right, wearing a berrettino.
Dimensions
  • Height: 97.2cm
  • Width: 91.4cm
  • Depth: 45cm
  • Weight: 74kg (measured for Europe 1600-1800)
Height from Pope-Hennessy, John, assisted by Lightbrown, Ronald, Catalogue of Italian Sculpture in the Victoria and Albert Museum, Volume II: Text. Sixteenth to Twentieth Century. London: Her Majesty's Stationery Office, 1964, p. 625. Width from Object File Depth from Matthew Clarke, outline measurements from Jones Gallery decant, 31/8/2011.
Gallery label
POPE ALEXANDER VII Italian (Rome); 1690 Bronze By Domenico Guidi (1621-1701) This bust, of which other versions exist in bronze and terracotta, may be precisely dated to 1690 form a document recording the modelling of the Pope’s portrait by Domenico Guidi. Guidi was a pupil of Alessandro Algardi (1595-1654), one of the leading Baroque sculptors in Rome. (1993 - 2011)
Object history
Purchased in London
Historical context
Papal busts of this type were regularly made in the Vatican "fonderia". Other versions of this exist in bronze (Rome, private collection) and terracotta (Los Angeles County Museum).

Domenico Guidi was a pupil of Alessandro Algardi (1595-1654), one of the leading Baroque sculptors in Rome.
Subject depicted
Pope Alexander VIII (Pietro Ottoboni)
Summary
This papal bust is ascribed to the sculptor Domenico Guidi and made in Italy ca. 1690.
It represents Pope Alexander VIII (Pietro Ottoboni, who was Pope from 1689-91).

Papal busts of this type were regularly made in the Vatican "fonderia". Other versions of this exist in bronze (Rome, private collection) and terracotta (Los Angeles County Museum).

Domenico Guidi was a pupil of Alessandro Algardi (1595-1654), one of the leading Baroque sculptors in Rome.
Associated object
1088-1853
Bibliographic references
  • Pope-Hennessy, John, assisted by Lightbrown, Ronald, Catalogue of Italian Sculpture in the Victoria and Albert Museum. Volume II: Text. Sixteenth to Twentieth Century. London: Her Majesty's Stationery Office, 1964, p. 625
  • Bacchi, Andrea, Scultura del '600 a Roma, Milan, 1996, p. 811
  • Fusco, Peter,' A Portrait Medallion of Pope Alexnader VIII by LOrenzo Ottoni in the J. Paul Getty Museum', The Burlington Magazine, Dec. 1997, vol. CXXXIX, No. 1137, pp. 874-875, ill. 52
  • Giometti, Cristiano, ' Il Modello del Battesimo di Domenico Guidi e proposte per una committenza Albani a Guidi e Ottoni', Studi sul Settecento Romano, 19, 2003, p. 55 and fig 1 on p. 64
  • Inventory of Art Objects Acquired in the Year 1853. In: Inventory of the Objects in the Art Division of the Museum at South Kensington, Arranged According to the Dates of their Acquisition. Vol I. London: Printed by George E. Eyre and William Spottiswoode for H.M.S.O., 1868, p. 3
  • Maclagan, Eric and Longhurst, Margaret H. Catalogue of Italian Sculpture. Text. London: Victoria and Albert Museum, 1932, p. 160
  • Giometti, Cristiano. 'Baroque Sculpture rediscovered: a model and a bust by Domenico Guidi' Sculpture Journal. Vol.18, No. 1, 2009, pp.115-120.
Collection
Sculpture Collection
Accession number
1089-1853

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Record createdApril 2, 2008
Record URL
https://collections.vam.ac.uk/item/O151956/pope-alexander-viii-bust-domenico-guidi/
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