God the Father

Object belonging

One's own

Category

Wood sculpture

City

Rome

Location

Museo Nazionale del Palazzo di Venezia

Specific location

Store

Inventory

s.n.

Material and technique

Sculpted wood, paint

Author

Roman School

Dating

17th century

Dimensions

49 x 95 x 25 cm.

Origin

Gorga Collection (1948)

Image copyright

SSPSAE e per il Polo Museale della città di Roma

Short description

This sculpture came from the collection of the opera singer Gennaro Evangelista (called Evan) Gorga, which was given to the Italian state in 1948 and was intended for the most part for the Palazzo Venezia museum. The bust depicts God the Father, with a globe in his left hand, large eyes and a furrowed brow, with long white hair and a beard blown by the wind, and a golden mantle that flutters behind his right shoulder. It is simply and schematically worked, seemingly translating the dominant lines of Roman figurative culture from the first half of the 17th century into a more folkloristic language. The sculpture, which is not carved on the back and would thus have been placed against a flat surface, probably comes from the tympanum on an altar.

Grazia Maria Fachechi 

Bibliography

Unpublished