Plaquette, bronze, Hercules and the oxen of Geryon, by Moderno, North Italy, late 15th to early 16th century

Plaquette in bronze of the naked Hercules, seen from the back, dragging two oxen by their horns in a classical architectural setting. The plaquette is pierced with a large hole at the top.

Salting Bequest

This object was bequeathed by George Salting in 1910.

Historical significance: The series, frequently encountered, comprises Moderno's best-known works. Pope-Hennessy notes that this plaquette is found in many collections, both signed and unsigned. The format may vary, as circular examples with palmette borders are also known ( Pope-Hennessy, 1965, cat. 137), although the status of those examples is unclear.

This episode of the tenth Labour of Hercules shows the semi-god taking the oxen away from their stables after he has slain their custodian, the monster Geryon.
The naked Hercules is seen from behind, in a combination of the classically balanced pose of the contrapposto with the highly dynamic gesture of brandishing two oxen by their horns whilst moving forward. Moderno's minutiae in the rendering of the hero's powerful musculature, the oxen's supple folds of skin, the crisp rendering of the ground and the precision of the architecture, are testimonies to his training as a goldsmith, and his skills as a gem-engraver.

The classicising treatment of the figure recalls that of his contemporary, the sculptor to the Gonzaga court at Mantua Antico (whose trade name probably influenced his own). Mantegna also had a considerable influence upon the young Moderno. This piece is characteristic of a shift in Moderno's style, towards the more classicising, where the efficient simplicity of the balanced composition recalls the Antique. The archaeological exactitude of the setting shows Moderno's careful observation of antique architecture. Douglas Lewis (1989, pp. 110-111) saw the archway as reminiscent of the 'Porta Borsari' in Moderno's native Verona, while the other plaquettes of the series [Hercules and a Centaur, Hercules Triumphant over Cacus] show similar observation of Veronese antiquities.

Moderno probably produced the Labours of Hercules, wahich are based on Virgil's Aeneid, while he was in Mantua (c.1485-1490), Virgil's birthplace. Lewis argues, following Spencer's interpretation of the series as an integrated allegory of Fortitude, that Moderno's choice of subjects shows his knowledge of both Virgil's classical text and its early Christian commentary by Fulgentius, and thereby his acquaintance to antiquarian humanists circles (Lewis, 1989, p.110). The series can moreover be connected to Moderno's acquaintance with the reigning duke of Ferrara, Ercole I d'Este (1431-1505) and his daughter Isabella d'Este, a prominent patron of the arts from the 1480s in Mantua (Hill, 1917, p. 109, Lewis, 1989, p. 111), where Mantegna and Antico were also working.

The Hercules series was undoubtedly popular, and apparently encouraged Moderno to carry on exploring the theme, with a larger pair of related plaquettes, Hercules Overcoming Antaeus and Standing Hercules with the Nemean Lion (Lewis, 1989, pp. 112-113, fig. 8-9).
Lewis calls Moderno 'the most accomplished artist of Italian Renaissance plaquettes' (Lewis, 1989, p. 105). His production was admired and very influential in his time and beyond. The format of the plaquettes, as small objects easy to carry, would have privileged the diffusion of his art throughout Europe.

This early work by Moderno (Galeazzo Mondella) is one of the twelve known signed designs by the artist, to whom Douglas Lewis attributes no less than forty-five designs (Lewis, 1989, p. 105). It belongs to a series of four signed plaquettes of similar design and size representing the tenth Labour of Hercules. The other three scenes are: Cacus Stealing the Oxen of Hercules, Hercules and a Centaur, and Hercules Triumphant over Cacus. Although the latter is sometimes referred to as Hercules and Antaeus, the continuity to the theme of the tenth labour is suggested by the presence of a broken arch in both this composition and the work studied here (for a compelling attribution of the full series to the tenth Labour of Hercules, see Spencer,1969, pp. 8-10). The Samuel H. Kress collection has a full set (Pope-Hennessy, 1965, cat. 134-138).

Moderno specialised in small bronze plaquettes exploring religious or antique themes, and catered for a clientele of learned humanists. These objects, produced in quantities, were usually found in these scholars's studios, where they kept functional objects and collectibles. Such plaquettes had an essentially ornamental purpose. They are often incomplete in themselves, as they would be applied or mounted on items of household furniture, such as inkstands, lamps or caskets. They could also sometimes be used as items of personal adornment, to decorate clothing or accessories (Hill, 1917, p. 104, Spencer, 1969, pp. 5-7). Together, the four scenes of the tenth Labour of Hercules present a narrative aspect and symbolic unity (as allegorical representations of Fortitude) suited for decoration of a casket or similar small container (Spencer, 1969, p. 10).

As small objects easily transportable, plaquettes were also used by artists as means of transmitting themes, compositions, and their interpretations of antiquity. As aesthetically pleasing and morally elevating objects, they bore an intrinsic value as collectibles, and appear in inventories of 16th-century collections (Spencer, 1969, p. 7)

Galeazzo Mondella, called Moderno. Northern Italian.

Attribution note: One of a series of four signed plaquettes of similar design and size representing the acts of Hercules

Moderno specialised in small bronze plaquettes exploring religious or antique themes. These appealed to humanist collectors, who kept both functional objects and collectibles in their study. The plaquettes were often used to decorate household items, such as inkstands, lamps or caskets. The series of the tenth labour of the semi-god Hercules, to which this object belongs, was particularly popular. Here, Hercules has slain the monster Geryon and is driving away his magical cattle.

A.440-1910