Mercury
Statue
ca. 1863 (made)
ca. 1863 (made)
| Artist/Maker | |
| Place of origin |
Acquired by the museum in Paris in 1863 as a modern cast, the bronze is freely adapted from the version of Giambologna's Mercury in the Louvre. The Louvre bronze was sent to France from Florence in 1598, and is an example of a late type of Mercury evolved in Giambologna's workshop in the 1590s.
Born in Flanders Giovanni Bologna (1524-1608), or short Giambologna went to Rome to study antique sculpture from about 1550 to 1553. He then travelled through Florence where he was persuaded to stay. He became sculptor to the Medici family and thus became one of the most influential sculptors of the late 16th and early 17th centuries. He drew attention to many artists from Northern Europe and disseminated his style mainly through small bronzes. He established an efficient and large workshop.
Born in Flanders Giovanni Bologna (1524-1608), or short Giambologna went to Rome to study antique sculpture from about 1550 to 1553. He then travelled through Florence where he was persuaded to stay. He became sculptor to the Medici family and thus became one of the most influential sculptors of the late 16th and early 17th centuries. He drew attention to many artists from Northern Europe and disseminated his style mainly through small bronzes. He established an efficient and large workshop.
Object details
| Categories | |
| Object type | |
| Title | Mercury (generic title) |
| Materials and techniques | Bronze |
| Brief description | Statue, bronze, Mercury, after a model by Giambologna, France, ca. 1863 |
| Physical description | Mercury stands naked on a base that is the puff of a wind blown out by a putto head, with to little wings mounted on his ankles. |
| Dimensions |
|
| Object history | Acquired by the museum in Paris in 1863 [for 68] as a modern cast, the bronze is freely adapted from the version of Giambologna's Mercury in the Louvre. The Louvre bronze was sent to France from Florence in 1598, and is an example of a late type of Mercury evolved in Giambologna's workshop in the 1590s. |
| Subjects depicted | |
| Summary | Acquired by the museum in Paris in 1863 as a modern cast, the bronze is freely adapted from the version of Giambologna's Mercury in the Louvre. The Louvre bronze was sent to France from Florence in 1598, and is an example of a late type of Mercury evolved in Giambologna's workshop in the 1590s. Born in Flanders Giovanni Bologna (1524-1608), or short Giambologna went to Rome to study antique sculpture from about 1550 to 1553. He then travelled through Florence where he was persuaded to stay. He became sculptor to the Medici family and thus became one of the most influential sculptors of the late 16th and early 17th centuries. He drew attention to many artists from Northern Europe and disseminated his style mainly through small bronzes. He established an efficient and large workshop. |
| Bibliographic reference | 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. 55 |
| Collection | |
| Accession number | 9071-1863 |
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| Record created | June 24, 2009 |
| Record URL |
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