Altobello Averoldo of Brescia, died 1531, Bishop of Pola, Apostolic Legate [obverse]

1517/1521

Maffeo Olivieri

Associated Names
Maffeo Olivieri

Artist, Brescian, 1484 - after 1534

The sculpture is a coin or a medallion with a profile depiction of a man's head and upper shoulders. The man is wearing a round hat with a prominent crease and a tunic-like garment with pleats or ridges visible around the neckline. The man has a prominent nose, a slightly furrowed brow, and close-cropped, curly hair visible beneath the hat. The entire sculpture is made of bronze with a dark brown color, showcasing smooth, polished surfaces and textured patina. There is a border around the edge of the medallion featuring engraved text, possibly in Latin, which surrounds the profile of the man. The medallion has a small hole near the top. The portrait style is a traditional side profile, with the subject looking stately and dignified.

Media Options

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On View

West Building Ground Floor, Gallery G16

Artwork overview

  • Medium

    bronze

  • Credit Line

    Samuel H. Kress Collection

  • Dimensions

    overall (diameter): 9.43 cm (3 11/16 in.)
    gross weight: 285.01 gr (0.628 lb.)
    axis: 12:00

  • Accession Number

    1957.14.754.a

Associated Artworks

The sculpture is a round, flat medal featuring a relief of three human figures. The figures appear dynamic, captured in mid-motion, engaging in an entwined dance or struggle. They are depicted in a stylized, elongated manner with flowing hair, and some are adorned with drapery or cloth that accentuates the movement. The medal is made from a material that appears to be bronze, exhibiting a brown, slightly greenish patina. The inscription "VERITATI" followed by "D" is embossed below the figures on the rim of the medal. The medal has a small hole at the top for hanging or display.

Two Men Trying to Unveil Truth [reverse]

Maffeo Olivieri

1517

Artwork history & notes

Provenance

(Aimé Charles) Horace His de la Salle [1795-1878], Paris; (his estate sale, Sotheby's, London, 22-25 November 1880, 1st day, no. 101); 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

Bibliography

1883

  • Armand, Alfred. Les médailleurs italiens des quinzième et seizième siècles. 2nd ed. 3 vols. Paris, 1883-1887: 2:104, no. 12.

1908

  • Migeon, Gaston. "La collection de M. Gustave Dreyfus, V: Les plaquettes." Les Arts 80 (August 1908): 12, no. v.

1930

  • Hill, George Francis. A Corpus of Italian Medals of the Renaissance before Cellini. 2 vols. London, 1930: no. 486.

1931

  • Hill, George Francis. The Gustave Dreyfus Collection: Renaissance Medals. Oxford, 1931: no. 161.

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: 171.

1967

  • Hill, George Francis, and Graham Pollard. Renaissance Medals from the Samuel H. Kress Collection at the National Gallery of Art. London, 1967: no. 161.

1983

  • Wilson, Carolyn C. Renaissance Small Bronze Sculpture and Associated Decorative Arts at the National Gallery of Art. Washington, 1983: 64, no. 8.

2007

  • Pollard, John Graham. Renaissance Medals. The Collections of the National Gallery of Art Systematic Catalogue. 2 vols. Washington, 2007: 1:no. 183, repro.

Inscriptions

around circumference: ALTOBELLVS AVEROLDVS BRIXIEN[sis] POLEN[sis] EP[iscopu]S VEN[etiae] LEG[a]T[u]S APOST[olicus]

Wikidata ID

Q63847681

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