Italian, 18th century

The body of the snake is broken below the head. There is overall surface dirt. There are various small chips on the drapery, bed and on Hercules' toes. Otherwise the condition is good.
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NOTWITHSTANDING THIS REPORT OR ANY DISCUSSIONS CONCERNING A LOT, ALL LOTS ARE OFFERED AND SOLD AS IS" IN ACCORDANCE WITH THE CONDITIONS OF BUSINESS PRINTED IN THE SALE CATALOGUE."

This impressive marble group represents the Infant Hercules wrestling one of the snakes sent by the goddess Juno to kill him. It is carved after a model by the celebrated Roman Baroque sculptor, Ercole Ferrata (1610-1686), of which a signed marble version was sold in these rooms in 1987 for £100,000 (Sotheby's, London, 10^th December 1987, lot 176). Ferrata's model relates to a group attributed to his master, Alessandro Algardi (1598-1654), believed to date from around 1650, which is known chiefly from bronze casts, including one at Burghley House, acquired from the collection of Dr Richard Mead in 1755. A terracotta model of the subject, recorded in the 1719 inventory of the Gennari family from Bologna, is thought to refer to Algardi's model, whilst a bronze Infant Hercules, formerly in the Franzone Collection, Genoa, was recorded in 1873 as being by Algardi.

Significantly, Ferrata owned a terracotta version of Algardi's model, described in the 1686 inventory of his studio after his death as 'un putto di creta cotta significa un Ercoletto del Langardi'. The inventory also mentions a wax with the same subject, recorded as 'un putto di cera che strappa un serpe del Langardi'. Jennifer Montagu has suggested that the terracotta may have been a preliminary bozzetto or a copy of Algardi's group, and that the wax was probably a cast, since the inventory does not refer to either as being original. However, it is possible that one or both of these could have served as sketches for Ferrata's own, more fully developed interpretation of the theme, which shows the fury of the young boy unleashed on the serpent who dares to wake him from his cradle.

The present marble compares closely with a number of putti from Ferrata's oeuvre. Hercules' strong brow, fleshy cheeks, prominent pectoral muscles and dynamic pose are similar to the Cherubs Supporting the Emblem of St Andrew from the church of S. Andrea della Valle in Rome. The quality of the carving is evident particularly in the carefully delineated facial muscles and chiselled hair, and compares positively with the signed marble sold in 1987. The differences in the arrangement of the hair, the position of the snake and the more restrained decoration of the crib, however, would suggest that the present marble was probably carved by one of Ferrata's highly skilled students. Ferrata, who was himself trained by Gianlorenzo Bernini (1598-1680) and Alessandro Algardi (died 1654), ran a successful workshop, where he taught some of the most highly regarded sculptors of the age, including Giovanni Battista Foggini (1652-1725), Camillo Rusconi (1658-1728), Carlo Andrea Marcellini (1644-1713) and Melchiorre Caffa (1638-1667).

RELATED LITERATURE
Jennifer Montagu, Alessandro Algardi, New Haven/ London, 1985, pp. 405-408, nos. 127-127.D.3.; Jennifer Montagu, Roman Baroque Sculpture. The Industry of Art, New Haven/ London, 1989, pp. 4-5, 11, 16, 90, fig. 17