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Lot Essay
Riccio's Shouting Horseman, in the Victoria and Albert Museum, is one of the best known renaissance bronzes, and the rider from the present bronze closely follows Riccio's original. The horse, however, is taken from a completely different source: the four horses of San Marco in Venice. Scientific studies of the Shouting Horseman reveal that the separate elements were cast directly from a modelled original and are therefore unique (Von Allen Seiten Schön, loc. cit.). As a result, it has been argued that all other examples of the model must be 19th century copies, most likely created by Frédéric Spitzer, who owned the original until 1893, and who is known to have been involved in the faking of other works of art.
However, other examples of the Shouting Horseman exist, including an example in the Liechtenstein Collection. Like the Beit bronze, it combines the Riccio original for the rider and a (different) horse of San Marco. In the entry on the Liechtenstein bronze written for the exhibition of the collection in 1986-87 (Liebieghaus, loc. cit.), it is argued that the bronze was not from the hand of Riccio or even from his workshop, but was nevertheless a contemporary or near contemporary cast of the 16th century. Quite apart from the apparent authenticity of the facture of the bronze itself, it was pointed out that the Liechtenstein bronze was in the collection of Federico Mylius until 1879, before the widespread fashion for renaissance bronzes had firmly established itself and therefore before the incentive to fake such an object.
In addition, it could be argued that if the various known examples of the bronze were created at the instigation of Frédéric Spitzer, they would all have been closely similar, if not identical. In reality, the Liechtenstein and Beit bronzes show a number of significant differences, notably the horse itself, but also in the positioning of the proper left arm of the rider, in details of the armour and sandals, and in the treatment of the surface. It therefore seems that, just as the Shouting Horseman is one of the most admired bronzes today, it was equally admired in the 16th century, and was disseminated by other artists working in the circle of Riccio.
However, other examples of the Shouting Horseman exist, including an example in the Liechtenstein Collection. Like the Beit bronze, it combines the Riccio original for the rider and a (different) horse of San Marco. In the entry on the Liechtenstein bronze written for the exhibition of the collection in 1986-87 (Liebieghaus, loc. cit.), it is argued that the bronze was not from the hand of Riccio or even from his workshop, but was nevertheless a contemporary or near contemporary cast of the 16th century. Quite apart from the apparent authenticity of the facture of the bronze itself, it was pointed out that the Liechtenstein bronze was in the collection of Federico Mylius until 1879, before the widespread fashion for renaissance bronzes had firmly established itself and therefore before the incentive to fake such an object.
In addition, it could be argued that if the various known examples of the bronze were created at the instigation of Frédéric Spitzer, they would all have been closely similar, if not identical. In reality, the Liechtenstein and Beit bronzes show a number of significant differences, notably the horse itself, but also in the positioning of the proper left arm of the rider, in details of the armour and sandals, and in the treatment of the surface. It therefore seems that, just as the Shouting Horseman is one of the most admired bronzes today, it was equally admired in the 16th century, and was disseminated by other artists working in the circle of Riccio.