Not currently on display at the V&A

St. John the Baptist

Statuette
second half on 15th century (made)
Artist/Maker
Place of origin

This marble statuette, representing Saint John the Baptist is made after Matteo Civitali, in Lucca, in the second half of the 15th century.

Matteo Civitali was the only major Tuscan marble sculptor active outside Florence in the later 15th century. He appears to have been trained in Florence in the Rossellino studio. With a few exceptions all his major works were executed for his native town of Lucca. In the last years of his life he made an important series of statues for the Chapel of the Baptist in the Duomo at Genoa, which was interrupted by his death in 1501.


Object details

Categories
Object type
TitleSt. John the Baptist (generic title)
Materials and techniques
Marble
Brief description
Statuette, marble, St John the Baptist, after Matteo Civitali, Italy, Lucca, second half of 15th century
Physical description
In this statuette in marble of St. John the Baptist, the Saint is represented on a circular base wearing a hair shirt and cloak. His right hand, with the scroll ECCE AGNVS, rests on his breasts, and his left, which gathers up the mantle, rests on his left thigh.
Dimensions
  • Height: 47.8cm
Marks and inscriptions
'ECCE AGNVS' (Inscribed on a scroll.)
Object history
Purchased from the Gigli-Campana Collection, £15.
Subjects depicted
Summary
This marble statuette, representing Saint John the Baptist is made after Matteo Civitali, in Lucca, in the second half of the 15th century.

Matteo Civitali was the only major Tuscan marble sculptor active outside Florence in the later 15th century. He appears to have been trained in Florence in the Rossellino studio. With a few exceptions all his major works were executed for his native town of Lucca. In the last years of his life he made an important series of statues for the Chapel of the Baptist in the Duomo at Genoa, which was interrupted by his death in 1501.
Bibliographic references
  • Inventory of Art Objects Acquired in the Year 1861. 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. 35
  • Maclagan, Eric and Longhurst, Margaret H. Catalogue of Italian Sculpture. Text. London: Victoria and Albert Museum, 1932, p. 68
  • Pope-Hennessy, John. Catalogue of Italian Sculpture in the Victoria and Albert Museum. Volume I: Text. Eighth to Fifteenth Century. London: Her Majesty's Stationery Office, 1964, pp. 286, 287
Collection
Accession number
7601-1861

About this object record

Explore the Collections contains over a million catalogue records, and over half a million images. It is a working database that includes information compiled over the life of the museum. Some of our records may contain offensive and discriminatory language, or reflect outdated ideas, practice and analysis. We are committed to addressing these issues, and to review and update our records accordingly.

You can write to us to suggest improvements to the record.

Suggest feedback

Record createdJune 24, 2009
Record URL
Download as: JSONIIIF Manifest