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Lot Essay
When this bronze was sold to the family of the present owner, it had already been attributed to Severo da Ravenna (fl. c. 1496–1543) on the basis of similar works accepted to have come from his hand, especially the figure of Neptune from the Neptune and a Sea-monster from the Frick Collection, New York (inv. no. 1916.2.12, see Pope-Hennessy, op. cit., pp. 126-135).
Severo seems to have worked in Padua, Ferrara and Ravenna, and his oeuvre has been built up around two signed works, a marble figure of St. John the Baptist, commissioned in 1500 for the entrance to the chapel of St. Anthony in the Santo, Padua (in situ), and a bronze dragon or sea-monster in the Frick collection (inv. no. 1997.2.103; see Ebert-Schifferer, loc. cit.). On the basis of the latter attribution, a large group of small bronzes – many of them formerly attributed to the anonymous Master of the Dragons - have been ascribed to Severo and his workshop. These often include fantastical animals or sea-monsters, and often take the form of utilitarian domestic objects such as inkwells, oil lamps and candleholders. However, he is also known to have created independent works of art in bronze such as the group in the Frick mentioned above depicting Neptune astride a sea-monster, brandishing his trident (ibid., pp. 126-135).
There are numerous stylistic and compositional parallels between the Frick Neptune and the present bronze. The overall posture and positioning of the limbs are broadly similar, although the proper right hand of the figure offered here might be better angled to hold a thunderbolt – thereby suggesting Jupiter as a subject – than a trident. The body proportions of both figures, with their overt musculature, are also comparable. However, the most compelling similarities lie in the characterisation of the head of each figure, with their craggy features, luxuriant hair and beard, and disproportionally large size. Not known in any other casts, the present bronze is indicative of the growing interest in classical antiquity among the educated elite of Northern Italy in the early 16th century.
Severo seems to have worked in Padua, Ferrara and Ravenna, and his oeuvre has been built up around two signed works, a marble figure of St. John the Baptist, commissioned in 1500 for the entrance to the chapel of St. Anthony in the Santo, Padua (in situ), and a bronze dragon or sea-monster in the Frick collection (inv. no. 1997.2.103; see Ebert-Schifferer, loc. cit.). On the basis of the latter attribution, a large group of small bronzes – many of them formerly attributed to the anonymous Master of the Dragons - have been ascribed to Severo and his workshop. These often include fantastical animals or sea-monsters, and often take the form of utilitarian domestic objects such as inkwells, oil lamps and candleholders. However, he is also known to have created independent works of art in bronze such as the group in the Frick mentioned above depicting Neptune astride a sea-monster, brandishing his trident (ibid., pp. 126-135).
There are numerous stylistic and compositional parallels between the Frick Neptune and the present bronze. The overall posture and positioning of the limbs are broadly similar, although the proper right hand of the figure offered here might be better angled to hold a thunderbolt – thereby suggesting Jupiter as a subject – than a trident. The body proportions of both figures, with their overt musculature, are also comparable. However, the most compelling similarities lie in the characterisation of the head of each figure, with their craggy features, luxuriant hair and beard, and disproportionally large size. Not known in any other casts, the present bronze is indicative of the growing interest in classical antiquity among the educated elite of Northern Italy in the early 16th century.