Capitolina Flora, Giacomo & Giovanni Zoffoli (1731–1785 & 1745–1805)

Giacomo & Giovanni Zoffoli (1731 - 1785 & 1745 - 1805)

CAPITOLINE FLORA

Bronze, lost wax technique
Rome (late 18th Century)
Signed below her right foot: G.Z.F.
After the antique, currently in the Capitolini Museums in Rome

Provenance: Private collection, North America
Other versions:
National Trust, Saltram
Philadelphia Museum of Art
Ashmolean Museum, Oxford
ALR-certificate: S00247973


H 34 x W 10 x D 7 cm
H 13,39 x W 3,94 x D 2,76 inch


Sculpted by Giacomo and Giovanni Zoffoli, this bronze statuette is a late 18th century reduction interpretation of the original Capitoline Flora which dates back to the Hadrianic period (117 - 138 AD). However, it is still unclear whether it is the copy of an original Greek work or a Roman elaboration of late classic themes. The drapery, whose quality captivated her contemporaries, has been reworked during the Baroque period that making a correct attribution is difficult.

Traditionally thought to represent Flora, the Roman goddess of Spring, the Capitoline Flora is standing in contrapposto with her right leg slightly bent. She is wearing a chiton and a mantle which drapes over her slightly risen left hip.
On her head rests a flower wreath. Her right hand is extended with the palm outstretched. The flowers she is holding in her left hand are a restauration.

Flora is the Roman goddess of flowers, Spring and fertility. She is celebrated for her role in bringing the beauty and renewal of springtime. Flora is often depicted as a youthful and graceful woman adorned with flowers, embodying the blossoming of nature. The ancient Romans honoured her with the festival of Floralia, held from April 28 to May 3, which included games, dance and the wearing of colourful attire and flower crowns. Flora’s legacy endures as a symbol of growth, beauty and renewal.

Also known as Sabina (Emperor Hadrian’s wife) and Polyhymnia (Greek goddess of Hymns), the Capitoline Flora was found in Hadrian’s Villa, near the Pecile. Between 1739 and 1744, an excavation campaign was carried out by Liborio Michili. Within months of its discovery, Flora was described as ‘undeniably one of the most beautiful draped figures in Rome’ by Jean-François de Troy, director of the French Academy in Rome. The statue was donated to Pope Benedetto XIV who also asked de Troy for a cast of it in addition to the one he had to make for the academy. However, like many artistic treasures from European countries, the Capitoline Flora was seized by the French after the Treaty of Tolentino in 1797. Fortunately, the statue was restored to the Capitoline Collections once the Napoleonic Wars (1799 – 1815) were over.

Art and architectural discoveries including Herculanum (1738) and Pompei (1748) fuelled the interest in Antiquity and the Renaissance. This led to Italy being the prime destination of the Grand Tour, a cultural and educational practice that emerged during the late 16th century and peaked in the 18th.

The Grand Tour movement was essentially a long journey through continental Europe undertaken by young men from the British aristocracy and bourgeoisie, but also from other European countries. Until then, only kings and aristocratic patrons had the privilege of collecting works of art. However, once the bourgeoisie started to pride itself on its ability to build private collections; the market of art began to emerge. Art works themselves began to be conceived for more intimate and comfortable settings than before. Subjects and materials began to expand in response to the shifting tastes of individual collectors.

There was a demand not only for bronze figurines, a genre that harked back to Antiquity and had been popular in the Renaissance as well, but also for small marble pieces (often but not always reduced versions of monumental sculptures) which required a specific set of skills. In Rome, the main foundries were Righetti, Valadier, Boschi and Zoffoli; sculptor of our Flora.

Although a silversmith by profession, Giacomo Zoffoli also worked on large bronze sculpture. His earliest dated and signed work is Marcus Aurelius of 1763, now in the Green Vaults, Dresden. Giovanni was probably Giacomo’s nephew, and by 1787, he had taken over the premises and business.

Between November 1794 and August 1796, printed lists of bronze copies supplied in Rome were sent by Charles Heathcote Tatham to Henry Holland. The list by Zoffoli included details and prices of 59 bronze statuettes for sale. In 1961, the list was first published by the British art historian, Hugh Honour, with notes identifying the originals and indicating the whereabouts of some of the copies. However, the signatures on theses bronzes are inconsistent, thus comparison in technique, quality and style determine whether a piece is by Giacomo and Giovanni Zoffoli. As mentioned above, most of these bronze reductions were acquired by foreign travellers on the Grand Tour.

Bibliography

Duby, G. and Daval, J-L. (2006), Sculpture: From the Renaissance to the Present Day. Los Angeles: Taschen.

Haskell, F. & Penny, N. (1981), Taste and the Antique. New Haven and London: Yale University Press.

The Arts Council of Great Britain (1972), The Age of Neo-Classicism. London and Harlow: Shenval Press.

La Rocca E. and Presicce C. P. (2010), Musei Capitolini. Le Sculture del Palazzo Nuovo (1). Rome: Electa.