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Lot Essay
This anatomical model of a horse -- which is, at first glance, a surprisingly modern composition -- has a long and storied history. There were models probably appearing as early as the last years of the 16th century. An already bold idea --- the portrayal of a flayed man -- has, by choosing the noble and traditional composition of a pacing horse, been taken even deeper into the realm of both artistic creativity and scientific inquiry.
Weihrauch first suggested the connection to Giuseppe Valadier (1762-1839) in his Europäische Bronzestatuetten, Brunswick, 1967, fig. 437. This connection to the famous Roman family was developed more fully by Anthony Radcliffe in Giambologna: Sculptor to the Medici, exh. cat., London, 1978, no. 169 and then, most recently, by John Winter in the exhibition Valadier: Three Generations of Roman Goldsmiths, London, 1991, pp. 148-152. Both Radcliffe and Winter came to similar conclusions -- that the model is more likely to have been produced by Luigi Valadier (1726-85), Giuseppe's uncle who ran the foundry before Giuseppe. Among other convincing connections to the Valadier workshops, is the mention in the workshop inventory of 1810 of: Una basamento di marmo quadrilungo intagliato con sopra l'Anatomia di Cavallo di metallo patinato (Winter, op. cit., p. 151).
There are four known larger scale versions of this model -- all ranging in heights from 36¼-36½ inches: one, originally from the Torrie Collection, and now at the University of Edinburgh, a second, part of the Loeser Bequest at the Palazzo Vecchio in Florence, a third in the Springfield Museum of Art and the fourth in a private collection.
The present model belongs to the group of smaller horses -- usually either approximately 19 in. and 9 in. high -- and some of these are listed by Avery and Radcliffe (op. cit., p. 186).
Weihrauch first suggested the connection to Giuseppe Valadier (1762-1839) in his Europäische Bronzestatuetten, Brunswick, 1967, fig. 437. This connection to the famous Roman family was developed more fully by Anthony Radcliffe in Giambologna: Sculptor to the Medici, exh. cat., London, 1978, no. 169 and then, most recently, by John Winter in the exhibition Valadier: Three Generations of Roman Goldsmiths, London, 1991, pp. 148-152. Both Radcliffe and Winter came to similar conclusions -- that the model is more likely to have been produced by Luigi Valadier (1726-85), Giuseppe's uncle who ran the foundry before Giuseppe. Among other convincing connections to the Valadier workshops, is the mention in the workshop inventory of 1810 of: Una basamento di marmo quadrilungo intagliato con sopra l'Anatomia di Cavallo di metallo patinato (Winter, op. cit., p. 151).
There are four known larger scale versions of this model -- all ranging in heights from 36¼-36½ inches: one, originally from the Torrie Collection, and now at the University of Edinburgh, a second, part of the Loeser Bequest at the Palazzo Vecchio in Florence, a third in the Springfield Museum of Art and the fourth in a private collection.
The present model belongs to the group of smaller horses -- usually either approximately 19 in. and 9 in. high -- and some of these are listed by Avery and Radcliffe (op. cit., p. 186).