Massimiliano Soldani-Benzi 1656-1740

Heim Gallery, London

Heim Summer 1978, no. 36; Washington, New York, Cambridge 1979-1982, no. 34; New York 1981, no. 24 (illus.); Chicago 1987-1988, no. 16

Pope-Hennessy 1967, p. 142, fig. 8; Lankheit 1982, pp. 137, no. 99: 17, p. 18, figs. 6 and 170

Standard surface abrasions and losses. Repaired breaks. The surface applied with a thin clay slip layer in some areas. Restorations throughout, including: top of the scythe’s handle, some limbs (such as in the lower female figure, the upper left-hand female figure and Neptune), the dolphin’s tail and mouth. Proper right leg of lower female figure is loose due to hairline crack. Some age cracks. Otherwise stable. The quality of the modeling is strong and details and original tool marks are evident. Some worming in the frame.
In response to your inquiry, we are pleased to provide you with a general report of the condition of the property described above. Since we are not professional conservators or restorers, we urge you to consult with a restorer or conservator of your choice who will be better able to provide a detailed, professional report. Prospective buyers should inspect each lot to satisfy themselves as to condition and must understand that any statement made by Sotheby's is merely a subjective qualified opinion.
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RELATED LITERATURE

Lankheit 1962, pp. 157-160, p. 313; Detroit 1974; Black-Nadeau 1980, cat. no. 21; Pratesi 1993

Massimiliano Soldani-Benzi spent the years 1722-29 making the second of his bronze tombs for Manoel de Vilhena, for the church of St. John in Valletta (Lankheit, op.cit., pp. 157-160). It is documented that when Soldani sent the tomb to Malta he also sent copies of a medal and a wax relief together with an explanation of their symbolism (op. cit., doc. 520, p. 313). This is also well documented by Pope-Hennessy (op. cit., pp. 142-144), in his article regarding the Victoria and Albert Museum's terra-cruda version of this composition.

The wax relief given by Soldani to Manoel was later acquired from the heirs of Father Paul Alpheran, bishop of Malta, who was also secretary to Manoel de Vilhena and a member of the Order of Malta. This wax was sold in Sotheby's London, July 7, 1994, lot 120 and is now preserved in the Los Angeles County Museum of Art. A second wax is known, and was in the collection of the Marchese Ginori Lisci and was probably purchased, by Marchese Carlo Ginori, along with a number of plaster moulds, from Soldani's son in 1744. Models were made from these moulds from which porcelain copies were produced at the Doccia factory with great success. In both the Ginori wax and the present terracotta relief, the figure of Eternity is markedly turned, shielding her face and part of her body.

The present relief is not a bozzetto but a highly finished modello, probably meant to be cast in bronze and then gilded or patinated, such as with the reliefs of the Four Seasons made for the Elector Palatine Johann Wilhelm (Detroit 1974, op. cit., p. 102).  It is also possible that, similar to the terracotta relief of the Agony in the Garden in the Metropolitan Museum of Art, this sculpture may have been considered a work of art in its own right and not a model for a bronze. There is no bronze version of this relief recorded.

Soldani was the most influential Baroque sculptor in Florence and frequently created elaborate compositions with complex allegories The present composition, with references to immortality, illustrated here is closely related to that of Manoel's tomb. The relief shows the seated figure of Neptune with his rearing horse behind him and his foot on a dolphin, flanked by Cybele with her lion and armour. On a palm and on olive branches hang shields enclosing the cross of the Order of Malta and elements from the Vilhena arms. To the left, mermen hold a plan of Fort Manoel and the seated female figure of Eternity hovers above with a coiled snake and is receiving the portrait bust of Manoel da Vilhena borne aloft by an eagle. To the right, the repelled figure of Time flies away.