John VIII Paleologus thumbnail 1
Image of Gallery in South Kensington
On display at V&A South Kensington
Sculpture, Room 111, The Gilbert Bayes Gallery

John VIII Paleologus

Medal
after 1438-1439 (made)
Artist/Maker
Place of origin

In 1438–9 John VIII Paleologus, Emperor of Byzantium, attended a conference in Ferrara. His visit was marked by this medal, possibly the first one produced by Pisanello and therefore the first true portrait medal of the Renaissance. Its design set a standard format for many future commemorative medals. The legend in Greek reads, ‘John, King and Emperor of the Romans, the Paleologus’.

Two-sided Renaissance portrait medals were a form developed by Pisanello, and commemorated individuals or events and functioned as gifts and mementoes. They were inspired by the Roman coins, with their portraits of rulers and allegorical representations on the reverse, excavated all over Italy and eagerly collected by humanist scholars


Object details

Categories
Object type
TitleJohn VIII Paleologus (generic title)
Materials and techniques
Bronze, cast
Brief description
Medal, bronze, bust of Emperor John Palaeologus of Constantinople, by Pisanello, Italy, after 1438-1489
Physical description
Medal depicts on the obverse the bust portrait of John Paleologus, the Emperor of Constantinople with a Greek inscription. On the reverse John Paleologus on horseback before a wayside cross.
Dimensions
  • Diameter: 8.5cm
Marks and inscriptions
(Inscribed in Greek on the obverse.)
Translation
John de Palaiologos basileus and autocrator of the Romans
Object history
Bought, £2.
Subject depicted
Summary
In 1438–9 John VIII Paleologus, Emperor of Byzantium, attended a conference in Ferrara. His visit was marked by this medal, possibly the first one produced by Pisanello and therefore the first true portrait medal of the Renaissance. Its design set a standard format for many future commemorative medals. The legend in Greek reads, ‘John, King and Emperor of the Romans, the Paleologus’.

Two-sided Renaissance portrait medals were a form developed by Pisanello, and commemorated individuals or events and functioned as gifts and mementoes. They were inspired by the Roman coins, with their portraits of rulers and allegorical representations on the reverse, excavated all over Italy and eagerly collected by humanist scholars
Bibliographic references
  • Inventory of Art Objects Acquired in the Year 1863 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. 38
  • Trusted, Marjorie, ed. The Making of Sculpture. The Materials and Techniques of European Sculpture. London: 2007, p. 76, pl. 114
  • Scher, Stephen K, The Currency of fame: portrait medals of the Renaissance, New York, National Gallery of Art (U.S.), Frick Collection., 1994 pp.44-46
  • Waddington, Raymond B., 'Breaking News: Representing the Islamic Other on Renaissance Medals', The Medal, no. 53, autumn 2008, pp. 6-20.
Collection
Accession number
7711-1863

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Record createdApril 27, 2005
Record URL
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