Luca de'Zuhari [obverse]

probably 1490/1520

Style of Antico

Associated Names
Anonymous Artist

Artist

Antico

Related Artist, Mantuan, c. 1460 - 1528

The image shows a round, metallic medallion featuring a bas-relief profile portrait of a man facing left. The man is depicted wearing a hat and has a distinct collar. The medallion is made of a reddish-brown bronze-like metal, with lighter highlights where the metal is polished or worn. The surface shows aging and patination. There is a Latin inscription encircling the portrait. A small hole is at the top of the medallion. The craftsmanship is detailed and skillful.

Media Options

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Artwork overview

  • Medium

    bronze//Originally gilded

  • Credit Line

    Samuel H. Kress Collection

  • Dimensions

    overall (diameter): 4.05 cm (1 5/8 in.)
    gross weight: 31.13 gr (0.031 kg)
    axis: 7:00

  • Accession Number

    1957.14.667.a

Associated Artworks

This is a photograph of an ancient coin or medallion. The object features a relief image of two figures in motion, with the inscription "VENER•et•MARS•VGO" around the edge. The figures appear to be intertwined, one carrying a palm frond, while the other wears a helmet and holds a weapon. The coin has a circular shape with a hole at the top, likely for wearing or attaching. The metal has an aged patina that highlights the craftsmanship.

Venus and Mars [reverse]

Anonymous Artist

1490

Artwork history & notes

Provenance

Oskar Hainauer [1840-1894], Berlin; by inheritance to his widow, Julie Hainauer [1850-1926], Berlin; purchased 1906 with the entire Hainauer collection by (Duveen Brothers, Inc., London, New York, and Paris); sold to Gustave Dreyfus [1837-1914], Paris; his heirs; purchased 9 July 1930 with the entire Dreyfus collection by (Duveen Brothers, Inc., London, New York, and Paris); sold 31 January 1944 to the Samuel H. Kress Foundation, New York;[1] gift 1957 to NGA.
[1] The Duveen Brothers Records document the firm’s sixteen year pursuit and eventual acquisition of the Dreyfus collection, which included paintings, sculptures, small bronzes, medals, and plaquettes. Bequeathed as part of his estate to Dreyfus’ widow and five children (a son and four daughters), who had differing opinions about its disposition, the collection was not sold until after his widow’s death in April 1929. Duveen did not wish to separate Dreyfus’ collection of small bronzes, medals, and plaquettes, and it was sold intact to the Kress Foundation for a price that was met by installment payments every three months. (Duveen Brothers Records, accession number 960015, Research Library, The Getty Research Institute, Los Angeles: reel 301, box 446, folders 3 and 4; reel 302, box 447, folders 1-6; reel 303, box 448, folders 1 and 2; reel 330, box 475, folder 4.) See also George Francis Hill’s discussion "A Note on Pedigrees" in his catalogue, The Gustave Dreyfus Collection: Renaissance Medals, Oxford, 1931: xii, which was commissioned by Duveen Brothers.

Associated Names

Bibliography

1883

  • Armand, Alfred. Les médailleurs italiens des quinzième et seizième siècles. 2nd ed. 3 vols. Paris, 1883-1887: 2:101, no. 15.

1908

  • A Cabinet of One Hundred & Thirty-Three Bronze Plaques and Medals of the Renaissance Period from the Collection of the Late Herr Oscar Hainauer of Berlin. Ed. Duveen Brothers. London, n.d. (but 1908): no. 97, repro.

1930

  • Hill, George Francis. A Corpus of Italian Medals of the Renaissance before Cellini. 2 vols. London, 1930: no. 217g.

1931

  • Hill, George Francis. The Gustave Dreyfus Collection: Renaissance Medals. Oxford, 1931: no. 74.

1951

  • National Gallery of Art. Renaissance Bronzes: Statuettes, Reliefs and Plaquettes, Medals and Coins from the Kress Collection. Introduction by Perry B. Cott. Washington, 1951: 165.

1967

  • Hill, George Francis, and Graham Pollard. Renaissance Medals from the Samuel H. Kress Collection at the National Gallery of Art. London, 1967: no. 74.

2007

  • Pollard, John Graham. Renaissance Medals. The Collections of the National Gallery of Art Systematic Catalogue. 2 vols. Washington, 2007: 1:no. 116, repro.

Inscriptions

around circumference: LVCAS D[e] ZVHARIS PREPOSITVS PONPONESCHI

Wikidata ID

Q63847844

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