French, mid-17th century, after the Antique

Sotheby's London, 2 July 2019, lot 68;

Where acquired.

As one of the prime surviving Roman sculptures – described by Johann Winckelmann as ‘the most sublime of all the statues of antiquity’ – the Apollo Belvedere was copied by sculptors from the moment it was discovered, such as the bronzes by Antico in the late 15^th century. The original Ancient marble takes its name from the Belvedere Courtyard in the Vatican where it was displayed from around 1503 and remains today, despite being taken to Paris in 1798 until Antonio Canova successfully negotiated the return in 1816 of the art treasures looted by Napoleon from Italy.

The characteristics of this bronze casting, with beautiful proportions and remarkable in all details, as well as the colour of the patina, are comparable to other French mid-17th century bronzes, at the time of Michel Anguier.

RELATED LITERATURE

F. Haskell, N. Penny, Taste and the Antique. The Lure of Classical Sculpture 1500-1900, revised and expanded edition by A. Aymonino and E. Dodero, vol. 1, Turnhout, 2024, pp. 178-84, no. 8.