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Lot Essay
Although originally commissioned by Cardinal Scipione Borghese and now returned to the Villa Borghese in Rome, the marble original of this composition was actually in the Villa Ludovisi in the 18th century (Wittkower, loc. cit.). Its spectular energy and the virtuosity of the carving meant that it attracted large numbers of tourists, and reductions in bronze are known to have been created.
A child prodigy, Bernini carved the Pluto and Proserpina in 1621-22 when he was still in his early 20s. He has depicted the moment when Pluto carries his struggling victim across the threshold into the underworld, represented by the three-headed dog Cerberus, who guards its entrance. According to mythology, Proserpina was the daughter of Ceres, the goddess of agriculture who, in her grief at the loss of her daughter, caused the earth to become barren. Proserpina would eventually be allowed to return from the underworld for four months of each year, during which time her mother allowed the earth to blossom.
A child prodigy, Bernini carved the Pluto and Proserpina in 1621-22 when he was still in his early 20s. He has depicted the moment when Pluto carries his struggling victim across the threshold into the underworld, represented by the three-headed dog Cerberus, who guards its entrance. According to mythology, Proserpina was the daughter of Ceres, the goddess of agriculture who, in her grief at the loss of her daughter, caused the earth to become barren. Proserpina would eventually be allowed to return from the underworld for four months of each year, during which time her mother allowed the earth to blossom.