Bacchus – Sculpture in La Serena
Work
Bacchus
Author
Jacopo Sansovino
Year
c. 1511–1512
Work narrative
History
The sculpture represents Bacchus, the Roman counterpart of the Greek Dionysus and god of wine and the grape harvest. The youthful nude raises a drinking cup, holds bunches of grapes and is accompanied by a small faun. These attributes identify the figure and connect the composition directly with the god's festive retinue.
Jacopo Sansovino created the model in Florence around 1511–1512 for the garden of Giovanni Bartolini's residence at Gualfonda. Rather than copying a single ancient statue, the composition reworked several Classical references through the serene, dynamic language of the High Renaissance. Sansovino's white-marble original, 146 centimetres high, is preserved in the Museo Nazionale del Bargello under inventory number Sculture 120.
Gabriel González Videla's Memorias record the La Serena sculpture as a one-metre-high copy in statuary marble of the Bargello original, acquired in Rome for the open-air museum created under Plan Serena. The same account states that the European sculptures were selected by Chilean ambassador Raúl Irarrázaval, advised by Antonio Rodríguez, and that the works of Plan Serena were inaugurated on 31 October 1952. It does not establish the exact date on which this reproduction was carved or installed.
The consulted documentation does not identify the sculptor, marble carver, workshop or seller responsible for the La Serena copy. Sansovino is therefore credited as the author of the Renaissance model, while the material authorship and reproduction method of the local marble remain undocumented.
Work record
Technical Data
AUTHOR
Jacopo Sansovino (model); maker and workshop of the La Serena reproduction undocumented
CHRONOLOGY
Undated marble reproduction acquired in Rome for Plan Serena; Sansovino model, c. 1511–1512
MATERIALITY
Statuary marble (according to Gabriel González Videla's Memorias)
TECHNIQUE
Marble carving; reproduction method undocumented
MOVEMENT
High Renaissance (reproduction of a model by Jacopo Sansovino)
WORK DESCRIPTION
Free-standing statuary-marble sculpture representing Bacchus as a nude youth in a sinuous contrapposto. The weight rests on one leg while the other advances lightly, creating a gentle rotation through the hips and torso.
One arm rises and presents a drinking cup, towards which the figure turns his head. The lowered hand holds bunches of grapes, while ivy crowns the curly hair. A small faun crouches beside and behind the supporting leg, completing the identification of the youthful god and establishing a compact secondary figure at the base.
The balanced pose, idealised anatomy, raised arm and close relationship between Bacchus and the faun reproduce the principal features of Sansovino's model. The figure stands on an integral marble plinth; the consulted documentation does not establish the workshop or mechanical process used to transfer the composition to the La Serena copy.
General Gallery
