Bartolommeo Colleoni thumbnail 1
Bartolommeo Colleoni thumbnail 2
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Image of Gallery in South Kensington
On display at V&A South Kensington
Cast Courts, Room 46b, The Weston Cast Court

Bartolommeo Colleoni

Bust
ca. 1885 (made), 1480-1496 (made)
Artist/Maker
Place of origin

This is a plaster cast of the original bronze head of Bartolomeo Colleoni (died 1475), from the equestrian monument in Campo SS. Giovanni e Paolo in Venice. Bartolommeo Colleoni (d. 1475) was a condottiere or mercenary leader, who had commanded the Venetian troops. In his will, he bequeathed a sum of money for this monument. The commission was awarded to Verrocchio in April 1480, but he left the statue unfinished at his death in 1488. It was cast by Alessandro Leopardi of Ferrara (1480- 96), whose signature appears on the girth of the horse. The plaster was cast by Elkington & Co. in Birmingham or London in about 1885.

Plaster casts were especially sought after during the 19th century, when reproductions of great works of sculpture and architecture were thought crucial for the training of artists. A separating substance was applied to the surface of the work to be reproduced, and a plaster mould made from that. The mould would then be used to make any number of additional plaster copies. These were often sold to artists, and later in the century to art colleges for study purposes.



Object details

Categories
Object type
TitleBartolommeo Colleoni (generic title)
Materials and techniques
Plaster cast
Brief description
Plaster Cast, of bust of Bartolomeo Colleoni, after bronze original from the equestrian monument in Campo SS. Giovanni e Paolo (Venice), by Andrea del Verrocchio, Venice, 1480-96, cast by Elkington & Co., Birmingham or London, ca. 1885
Dimensions
  • Base width: 29cm
  • Base depth: 22.5cm
Gallery label
Bartolomeo Colleoni was a military leader. This cast was taken from a great monument showing him on horseback. Verrocchio devoted the last years of his life to the monument, his masterpiece, though it was not finished until after his death. Casts of the full sculpture were made and displayed in other collections in the 19th century, but this reproduction focuses on the animated face.(2014)
Object history
Presented by the Right Hon. Sir J. Savile Lumley, GCB in 1885.
Historical context
This head is from the large equestrian monument to Bartolommeo Colleoni (d. 1475), a condottiere or mercenary leader, who had commanded the Venetian troops. In his will, he bequeathed a sum of money for this monument. The commission was awarded to Verrocchio in April 1480, but he left the statue unfinished at his death in 1488. It was cast by Alessandro Leopardi of Ferrara, whose signature appears on the girth of the horse.
Production
Plaster cast reproduction after the original marble by Verrocchio
Subject depicted
Summary
This is a plaster cast of the original bronze head of Bartolomeo Colleoni (died 1475), from the equestrian monument in Campo SS. Giovanni e Paolo in Venice. Bartolommeo Colleoni (d. 1475) was a condottiere or mercenary leader, who had commanded the Venetian troops. In his will, he bequeathed a sum of money for this monument. The commission was awarded to Verrocchio in April 1480, but he left the statue unfinished at his death in 1488. It was cast by Alessandro Leopardi of Ferrara (1480- 96), whose signature appears on the girth of the horse. The plaster was cast by Elkington & Co. in Birmingham or London in about 1885.

Plaster casts were especially sought after during the 19th century, when reproductions of great works of sculpture and architecture were thought crucial for the training of artists. A separating substance was applied to the surface of the work to be reproduced, and a plaster mould made from that. The mould would then be used to make any number of additional plaster copies. These were often sold to artists, and later in the century to art colleges for study purposes.

Bibliographic references
  • Cruttwell, Maud, Verrocchio, London: Duckworth and Co, 1904, pp. 177-200
  • Passavant, G., Verrocchio. Sculptures, Paintings and Drawings, London: Phaidon, 1969, pp. 62-68
  • Seymour, Charles Jr, The Sculpture of Verrocchio, London: Studio Vista, 1971, pp. 62-64
Collection
Accession number
REPRO.1885-198

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Record createdMarch 10, 2004
Record URL
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