Italian, Florence, probably 16th century

(Possibly) William Locke (1732-1810), Norbury Park, Surrey;

(Possibly) His sale, Christie's, London, 16 April 1785, lot 19;

Christie's London, 6 December 2007, lot 242

M. Scalini, ‘Le ragioni della mostra: aspetti della fortuna dei materiali antichi nella rinascita delle arti dal Medioevo al Rinascimento’, in Augusta Fragmenta: Vitalità dei materiali dell’antico da Arnolfo di Cambio a Botticelli a Giambologna, exh. cat. Museo Archeologico Regionale, Aosta, 2008, p. 33, fig. 22

This intriguing marble roundel has been the subject of scholarly interest since its emergence at auction in 2007. Depicting the head of the helmeted goddess Athena in profile, the work bears the signature of the great Mannerist sculptor Giambologna (1529-1608) and the date of 1563. While some scholars have been supportive of an attribution of the piece to Giambologna (e.g. Scalini, op. cit.), it would assume a unique position in the sculptor’s oeuvre, and it is instead more likely that the signature was added at a later date.

Despite this, the relief itself could well have been carved by an accomplished sculptor in 16th-century Florence. Its composition is derived from a Corinthian silver stater of circa 350-300 BC showing the head of Athena on the obverse, and the flying horse Pegasus on the reverse (see an example at the British Museum, London, inv. no. 1888,0618.3). That this image provided inspiration to Florentine Renaissance sculptors is attested to by the appearance of the Pegasus on the reverse of a 1539 medal bearing the likeness of Pietro Bembo, which is attributed to Benvenuto Cellini. Ancient Greek coins were treasured in Italian humanist circles and had been used as artistic sources by medallists since Pisanello.

Marble relief roundels with classical subjects were a popular genre in 16th-century Italy. A comparable relief from this period with the head of Athena is found in the Prado Museum, Madrid (inv. no. E 207; Coppel Areizaga, op. cit., no. 223). Stylistically, the present relief finds a close parallel in a marble roundel in the Museo Palazzo Mozzi Bardini, Florence (inv. no. Bd. n. 10183), which depicts the head of the nymph Arethusa, based on a coin design from Syracuse. Analogous in conception, both reliefs share the same bold Greek profile, stylised eye sockets, and mannered curls of hair. According to Scalini (op. cit., pp. 29-30), the two roundels were probably made by the same hand and intended for an antiquarian decorative scheme.

The present roundel has been tentatively identified with ‘a marble basso relievo’, which was listed (and apparently withdrawn) in a Christie’s London sale on 16 April 1785 as lot 19, alongside ‘twenty-two wax models by Giov di Bologna’. The consignor of this lot was the artist and collector William Locke (1732-1810) of Norbury Park, Surrey, who was well-known for his interest in Giambologna. If indeed this is the same relief as that from Locke’s collection, the Giambologna signature may have been added by a dealer to deceive this keen collector of the Mannerist sculptor’s works.

RELATED LITERATURE

C. Avery, Giambologna. The Complete Sculpture, London, 1993; R. Coppel Aréizaga, Catálogo de la Escultura de Época Moderna, Siglos XVI-XVIII, Madrid, 1998