Probably French, 'Fame', possibly 19th century
Full title | Fame |
---|---|
Artist | Probably French |
Date made | possibly 19th century |
Medium and support | Bronze, hollow cast |
Dimensions | 166 × 144 × 87 cm |
Acquisition credit | Presented by Sir Herbert Cook, Bt, through the Art Fund in memory of Sir Francis Cook, Bt, 1925 |
Inventory number | NG4105 |
Location | Not on display |
Collection | Main Collection |
A life-size female nude with outspread wings alights upon a cloud, which is blown from a mask’s mouth. The mask is of Boreas, the Greek god of the north wind and of winter. In her outstretched right arm, she holds a long trumpet to her lips. In her left hand, she holds a shorter trumpet.
This bronze sculpture was probably made in France during the nineteenth century as a replica of a bronze of the same subject by Pierre Biard (1559–1601), La Renommée (Fame), which was made around 1597. Biard’s sculpture (now in the Louvre, Paris) was commissioned for a funerary monument. It is modelled on Giambologna’s bronze sculpture of the Roman god Mercury, which was made around 1580. Biard may have seen a cast of one of the four versions of this sculpture when he travelled to Rome between 1577 and 1580.
A life-size female nude with outspread wings alights upon a cloud, which is blown from a mask’s mouth. The mask is of Boreas, the Greek god of the north wind and of winter. In her outstretched right arm, she holds a long trumpet to her lips. In her left hand, she holds a shorter trumpet.
This bronze sculpture is assembled from several separately made parts. It was probably made in France during the nineteenth century as a replica of a bronze of the same subject by Pierre Biard (1559–1601), La Renommée (Fame), which was made around 1597. Biard’s sculpture (now in the Louvre, Paris) was commissioned for a funerary monument. It is modelled on Giambologna’s bronze sculpture of the Roman god Mercury, which was made around 1580. A messenger of the gods, Mercury also guided souls to the underworld. Biard may have seen a cast of one of the four versions of this sculpture when he travelled to Rome between 1577 and 1580.
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