Cupid on a Horse thumbnail 1
Cupid on a Horse thumbnail 2
Image of Gallery in South Kensington
On display at V&A South Kensington
Sculpture, Room 111, The Gilbert Bayes Gallery

Cupid on a Horse

Statuette
ca. 1640 (made)
Artist/Maker
Fanelli, Francesco (artist)
Place of origin
London (made)

Francesco Fanelli (died 1665) was an Italian sculptor who worked at the court of Charles I. He was described in a royal inventory as,‘ffrancisco the one eyed Italian’. His numerous small bronzes often combine the same elements to form new compositions. He came to England from Genoa around 1631 and in 1640 described himself as 'Sculptor to the King of Great Britain'.
Charles I's collection contained many bronzes, including a version of this model.


Object details

Categories
Access_to_Images 2003
Sculpture
Myths & Legends
Object type
Statuette
TitleCupid on a Horse (generic title)
Materials and techniques
Bronze
Bronze
Casting
Brief description
Statuette, bronze, by Francesco Fanelli, Anglo-Italian (London), ca. 1640
Physical description
Cupid, astride a galloping horse, is about to fire his bow and arrow.
Dimensions
  • Height: 14.9cm
  • Base width: 6.7cm
  • Overall length: 18.8cm
Credit line
Given by Dr W.L. Hildburgh FSA
Object history
Given by Dr. W. L. Hildburgh, F. S. A., 1952.
Production
Anglo-Italian
Subjects depicted
Horses
Archery
Cupid
Summary
Francesco Fanelli (died 1665) was an Italian sculptor who worked at the court of Charles I. He was described in a royal inventory as,‘ffrancisco the one eyed Italian’. His numerous small bronzes often combine the same elements to form new compositions. He came to England from Genoa around 1631 and in 1640 described himself as 'Sculptor to the King of Great Britain'.
Charles I's collection contained many bronzes, including a version of this model.
Bibliographic references
  • Howarth, D. 'Charles I, Sculpture and Sculptor's'. In: A. MacGregor (ed.), The Late King's Goods, Oxford University Press, London & Oxford, no. 3, p. 93, fig 44
  • Warren, Jeremy, with contributions from Kim, S. and Kosinova, A., The Wallace Collection Catalogue of Italian Sculpture, Vol. 2, London, 2016, p. 434, fig. 100.2
Collection
Sculpture Collection
Accession number
A.37-1952

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Record createdJanuary 13, 2004
Record URL
https://collections.vam.ac.uk/item/O89281/cupid-on-a-horse-statuette-fanelli-francesco/
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