Beatrice
Statue
ca. 1851 (made)
ca. 1851 (made)
| Artist/Maker | |
| Place of origin |
Object type
This is a full-size plaster figure of Beatrice, from The Divine Comedy, by the Italian poet Dante Alighieri (1265-1321). Versions of this figure were made in other materials, including bronze. Sculptors would often display a plaster version of a figure or group at an exhibition in order to attract potential patrons or customers. Plaster was a relatively cheap material, and was cast from a mould. Hancock probably modelled the original model in clay, from which the mould for the plaster figure was made.
People
Beatrice was the inspiration for the poetic masterpiece The Divine Comedy, written in the early 14th century. In Book II of the poem she leads the poet up the mountain of Purgatory, and in Book III she leads him to Paradise. She was in part based on a real woman whom Dante apparently knew and fell in love with in Florence, but she also symbolised divine love and redemption.
Places
This figure was displayed in the Sculpture Court of the Crystal Palace on the occasion of the Great Exhibition of 1851. The Crystal Palace was designed and built in London's Hyde Park by Joseph Paxton (1801-1865); after the close of the Exhibition it was moved to Sydenham, where it remained until it was destroyed by fire in 1936.
This is a full-size plaster figure of Beatrice, from The Divine Comedy, by the Italian poet Dante Alighieri (1265-1321). Versions of this figure were made in other materials, including bronze. Sculptors would often display a plaster version of a figure or group at an exhibition in order to attract potential patrons or customers. Plaster was a relatively cheap material, and was cast from a mould. Hancock probably modelled the original model in clay, from which the mould for the plaster figure was made.
People
Beatrice was the inspiration for the poetic masterpiece The Divine Comedy, written in the early 14th century. In Book II of the poem she leads the poet up the mountain of Purgatory, and in Book III she leads him to Paradise. She was in part based on a real woman whom Dante apparently knew and fell in love with in Florence, but she also symbolised divine love and redemption.
Places
This figure was displayed in the Sculpture Court of the Crystal Palace on the occasion of the Great Exhibition of 1851. The Crystal Palace was designed and built in London's Hyde Park by Joseph Paxton (1801-1865); after the close of the Exhibition it was moved to Sydenham, where it remained until it was destroyed by fire in 1936.
Object details
| Category | |
| Object type | |
| Title | Beatrice (assigned by artist) |
| Materials and techniques | Plaster |
| Brief description | Statue, plaster, 'Beatrice', by John Hancock, English, ca. 1851 |
| Physical description | Beatrice is wearing pointed slippers and a floral garland. |
| Dimensions |
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| Style | |
| Marks and inscriptions |
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| Gallery label | British Galleries:
This figure by the Pre-Raphaelite sculptor John Hancock was placed in one of the main avenues of the Crystal Palace. Beatrice was the woman who had inspired the Italian poet Dante (1265-1321). The jury for the Great Exhibition praised 'the pure and noble expression of the head'.(27/03/2003) |
| Credit line | Lent anonymously |
| Object history | It was shown at the Great Exhibition in 1851. This object was taken on loan from G. Hancock Esq. (presumably a relative of the sculptor) at a date unrecorded, prior to 1870, perhaps in 1869, after the death of the sculptor. On loan to Queen's Park Museum, Manchester from May 1884; returned April 1903. |
| Subject depicted | |
| Summary | Object type This is a full-size plaster figure of Beatrice, from The Divine Comedy, by the Italian poet Dante Alighieri (1265-1321). Versions of this figure were made in other materials, including bronze. Sculptors would often display a plaster version of a figure or group at an exhibition in order to attract potential patrons or customers. Plaster was a relatively cheap material, and was cast from a mould. Hancock probably modelled the original model in clay, from which the mould for the plaster figure was made. People Beatrice was the inspiration for the poetic masterpiece The Divine Comedy, written in the early 14th century. In Book II of the poem she leads the poet up the mountain of Purgatory, and in Book III she leads him to Paradise. She was in part based on a real woman whom Dante apparently knew and fell in love with in Florence, but she also symbolised divine love and redemption. Places This figure was displayed in the Sculpture Court of the Crystal Palace on the occasion of the Great Exhibition of 1851. The Crystal Palace was designed and built in London's Hyde Park by Joseph Paxton (1801-1865); after the close of the Exhibition it was moved to Sydenham, where it remained until it was destroyed by fire in 1936. |
| Bibliographic references |
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| Other number | LOAN:ANON.5-2001 - Previous loan number |
| Collection | |
| Accession number | LOAN:SCPANON.1-1991 |
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| Record created | October 25, 2002 |
| Record URL |
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