Francesco I Sforza, 1401-1466, 4th Duke of Milan 1450 [obverse]

1459

Gianfrancesco Enzola

Associated Names
Gianfrancesco Enzola

Artist, Parmese, active 1455/1478

The sculpture is a circular medallion featuring a relief portrait of a man in profile, facing to the right. The subject has a prominent nose and chin, and his hair appears to be styled in a short, curled fashion with a small section tied back behind his head. He is depicted wearing a garment with a patterned collar. The medallion is crafted from a material that appears bronze-like, giving it a metallic brown color with some areas showing darker patination. The outer edge of the medallion contains an inscribed text around the perimeter, and there is a small hole near the top. This sculpture is detailed in its depiction of facial and clothing features and gives an impression of being an ancient or historical object.

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Artwork overview

  • Medium

    bronze

  • Credit Line

    Samuel H. Kress Collection

  • Dimensions

    overall (diameter): 4.41 cm (1 3/4 in.)
    gross weight: 41.21 gr (0.091 lb.)
    axis: 12:00

  • Accession Number

    1957.14.686.a

Associated Artworks

The sculpture is a medallion with a side profile of a figure, likely female, featuring distinct facial features and styled hair with tight curls around the head. The figure is adorned in textured clothing with a decorative collar. The medallion is made of a copper-colored material. Engraved text surrounds the figure. There is a hole near the top, possibly for use as a pendant. The size of the figure in relation to the medallion provides insight into the portraiture style of its time.

Galeazzo Maria Sforza, 1444-1476, 5th Duke of Milan 1466 [reverse]

Gianfrancesco Enzola

1459

Artwork history & notes

Provenance

Gustave Dreyfus [1837-1914], Paris; his heirs; purchased with the entire Dreyfus collection 9 July 1930 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

Exhibition History

1988

  • The Sforza Court: Milan in the Renaissance 1450-1535, Archer M. Huntington Art Gallery, The University of Texas at Austin; University Art Museum, University of Cal. at Berkeley; Yale University, New Haven, 1988-1989, no. 83.

Bibliography

1883

  • Armand, Alfred. Les médailleurs italiens des quinzième et seizième siècles. 2nd ed. 3 vols. Paris, 1883-1887: 1:44, no. 7.

1930

  • Hill, George Francis. A Corpus of Italian Medals of the Renaissance before Cellini. 2 vols. London, 1930: no. 284.

1931

  • Hill, George Francis. The Gustave Dreyfus Collection: Renaissance Medals. Oxford, 1931: no. 93.

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: 166.

1967

  • Hill, George Francis, and Graham Pollard. Renaissance Medals from the Samuel H. Kress Collection at the National Gallery of Art. London, 1967: no. 93.

2007

  • Pollard, John Graham. Renaissance Medals. The Collections of the National Gallery of Art Systematic Catalogue. 2 vols. Washington, 2007: 1:no. 136, repro.

Inscriptions

around circumference: FR[anciscus] SFORTIA VICECOMES M[edio]L[an]I DVX IIII BELLI PATER ET PACIS AVTOR MCCCCLVI; across center in field: V F

Wikidata ID

Q63847606

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