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Effigy of Guidarello Guidarelli

Effigy
1525 (completed), ca. 1885 (cast)
Artist/Maker
Place of origin

This is a plaster cast of the effigy of Guidarello Guidarelli (ca.1455-1501) after the marble tomb by Tullio Lombardo, now in the Galleria Nazionale, Ravenna. Guidarelli was a mercenary leader who was fatally wounded in a quarrel over an elaborate shirt. In his will he stipulated the conditions for the execution of his tomb, naming a committee of Ravenna humanists to choose the best design by an artist from Florence or Venice. The effigy originally surmounted a re-cut early Christian sarcophagus, and stood in a chapel in the church of S. Francesco in Ravenna. By 1707 the sarcophagus had been appropriated by a descendant of Guidarello, and moved to the left aisle of S. Francesco. It was later taken to the Galleria Nazionale in Ravenna. The plaster cast was acquired from the Academy of Fine Arts in Ravenna.

Object details

Categories
Object type
TitleEffigy of Guidarello Guidarelli (generic title)
Materials and techniques
Plaster cast
Brief description
Plaster cast after the marble effigy of Guidarello Guidarelli, originally in a chapel of the Church of San Francesco, by Tullio Lombardo, Ravenna, completed in 1525. Now in the Galleria Nazionale, Ravenna. Cast in Ravenna, about 1885.
Dimensions
  • Length: 178cm
  • Width: 53.5cm
Gallery label
(2014)
This figure of a medieval knight would have had great appeal in the 19th century, when the plaster reproduction was made. Guidarelli was a military leader, fatally wounded during a quarrel. The cast shows the effigy on his marble tomb in Ravenna. In his will, Guidarelli stipulated the conditions for the creation of his tomb, naming a committee of scholars to choose the best design.
Credit line
Presented by the Pinacoteca Comunale (Royal Academy of Fine Arts), Ravenna
Object history
Presented by the Pinacoteca Comunale (Royal Academy of Fine Arts), Ravenna in 1885
Historical context
Guidarello Guidarelli (about 1455-1501) was a condottiere or mercenary leader who was fatally wounded in a quarrel over an elaborate shirt. In his will (1501) he stipulated the conditions for the execution of his tomb, naming a committee of Ravennate humanists to choose the best design from an artist from Florence or Venice on the basis of a preliminary model. It is uncertain when the commission was awarded to Tullio Lombardo, but a final payment was recorded in 1525. The effigy originally surmounted a recut early Christian sarcophagus and stood in the chapel of S. Liberio in the church of S. Francesco in Ravenna. By 1634, the effigy had been removed to the chapel of Braccioforte, and by 1707 the sarcophagus had been appropriated by the descendant of Guidarello, Bartolommeo del Sale, and is now in the left aisle of S. Francesco. Only parts of the architectural surround of the tomb remain in the chapel of S. Liberio, rededicated to the Immaculate Conception.
Subjects depicted
Summary
This is a plaster cast of the effigy of Guidarello Guidarelli (ca.1455-1501) after the marble tomb by Tullio Lombardo, now in the Galleria Nazionale, Ravenna. Guidarelli was a mercenary leader who was fatally wounded in a quarrel over an elaborate shirt. In his will he stipulated the conditions for the execution of his tomb, naming a committee of Ravenna humanists to choose the best design by an artist from Florence or Venice. The effigy originally surmounted a re-cut early Christian sarcophagus, and stood in a chapel in the church of S. Francesco in Ravenna. By 1707 the sarcophagus had been appropriated by a descendant of Guidarello, and moved to the left aisle of S. Francesco. It was later taken to the Galleria Nazionale in Ravenna. The plaster cast was acquired from the Academy of Fine Arts in Ravenna.
Collection
Accession number
REPRO.1885-159

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Record createdJuly 10, 2000
Record URL
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