Hercules between Minerva and Venus thumbnail 1
Hercules between Minerva and Venus thumbnail 2
Image of Gallery in South Kensington
On display at V&A South Kensington
Medieval & Renaissance, Room 62, The Foyle Foundation Gallery

Hercules between Minerva and Venus

Plaquette
ca. 1500-1550 (made), first half of 16th century (made)
Artist/Maker
Place of origin

Plaquettes are small, often one-sided, reliefs. They may be made of bronze (as here), brass, lead or precious materials. They originated in the 1440s, often from a desire to reproduce or imitate images known from coins and hardstone engravings from ancient Greece and Rome, and sometimes as reproductions of contemporary engraved gems. This is one of around 13 examples of the same scene which are known to exist, including two hardstone cameos, and plaquettes in lead and bronze.

The scene, The Choice of Hercules, is taken from classical mythology. The seated figure of Hercules chooses between Virtue and Vice, here personified by the two goddesses Minerva (with a helmet) and Venus.

Some plaquettes were made as collectors’ pieces, to be viewed and displayed in private. Others were created for practical or devotional purposes, such as decorations for caskets, ink-stands and paxes.

The style is that of the gem-engraver Valerio Belli (around 1468-1546), who worked for two successive popes. Almost all of his bronze plaquettes are cast from his engravings in rock crystal or hardstone. In this case, however, no rock crystal original has yet been identified. The bronzes would have been cast from a plaster or brass mould made from the original hardstone engraving.


Object details

Categories
Object type
TitleHercules between Minerva and Venus (generic title)
Materials and techniques
Bronze
Brief description
Plaquette, bronze, depicting Hercules between Minerva and Venus, made in Italy, probably by Valerio Belli, Italy, first half of the 16th century
Physical description
Oval bronze plaquette with naked figure of Hercules seated draped in a lion's skin at the left and holding his club. In front of him stand Minerva, helmetted and holding a spear and an olive branch, and Venus, leading Cupid by the hand.
Dimensions
  • Height: 5cm
  • Width: 4.3cm
Measured for the Medieval and Renaissance Galleries
Marks and inscriptions
Inscription: INSTAR. and stamped B.M (Inscription is in the exergue. The stamped initials BM stand for the Baron de Monville, in whose collection the plaquette was at one time.)
Translation
Likeness
Credit line
Salting Bequest
Object history
Salting Bequest, from the collection of the Baron de Monville.

Historical significance: Probably cast from a mould made of a rock crystal or hardstone carving by Valerio Belli. For other examples of the plaquette see Burns et al, 2000. There is also a version in the British Museum which is signed by Valerio Belli. The iconography relates to the story of Hercules at the cross-roads, or the choice of Hercules. Related hardstone versions exist in Berlin and Naples. The seated figure of Hercules is a reference to one of Michelangelo's slaves in the Sistine chapel.
Historical context
Shows how images known from engraved gems and hardstones persisted and often appeared again in bronze plaquettes and small reliefs.
Subjects depicted
Summary
Plaquettes are small, often one-sided, reliefs. They may be made of bronze (as here), brass, lead or precious materials. They originated in the 1440s, often from a desire to reproduce or imitate images known from coins and hardstone engravings from ancient Greece and Rome, and sometimes as reproductions of contemporary engraved gems. This is one of around 13 examples of the same scene which are known to exist, including two hardstone cameos, and plaquettes in lead and bronze.

The scene, The Choice of Hercules, is taken from classical mythology. The seated figure of Hercules chooses between Virtue and Vice, here personified by the two goddesses Minerva (with a helmet) and Venus.

Some plaquettes were made as collectors’ pieces, to be viewed and displayed in private. Others were created for practical or devotional purposes, such as decorations for caskets, ink-stands and paxes.

The style is that of the gem-engraver Valerio Belli (around 1468-1546), who worked for two successive popes. Almost all of his bronze plaquettes are cast from his engravings in rock crystal or hardstone. In this case, however, no rock crystal original has yet been identified. The bronzes would have been cast from a plaster or brass mould made from the original hardstone engraving.
Associated object
950-1904 (Version)
Bibliographic references
  • Maclagan, E, Catalogue of Italian Plaquettes, Victoria and Albert Museum, London, 1924, p.64-5
  • Pope-Hennessy, J, Renaissance Bronzes from the Samuel H. Kress Collection, London, 1965, p.12, no.21
  • Molinier, E, Les Plaquettes: catalogue raisonné, Paris, 1886, no.288
  • Kris, E, Meister und meisterwerke der steinschneidekunst in der Italienischen Renaissance, Vienna, 1929 (reprinted 1979), p.161, no.154
  • Burns, H, Collareta, M, Gasparotto, D, Valerio Belli Vicentino 1468c.-1546, Vicenza, 2000, pp.350/51, no.124. no.6
  • '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. 77
Collection
Accession number
A.479-1910

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Record createdMarch 5, 2004
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