The classical sculptures in the Farnese Collection, one aspect of this large art collection, are one of the first collections of artistic items from Greco-Roman Antiquity. It includes some of the most influential classical works, including the sculptures that were part of the Farnese Marbles, their collection of statuary, which includes world-famous works like the

Farnese Hercules The ''Farnese Hercules'' ( it, Ercole Farnese) is an ancient statue of Hercules, probably an enlarged copy made in the early third century AD and signed by Glykon, who is otherwise unknown; the name is Greek but he may have worked in Rome. Like ...

Farnese Cup The Farnese Cup or Tazza Farnese is a 2nd-century BC cameo hardstone carving bowl or cup made in Hellenistic Egypt in four-layered sardonyx agate, now in the Naples National Archaeological MuseumInv. MANN 27611. It is a 20 cm wide and si ...

Farnese Bull The ''Farnese Bull'' ( it, Toro Farnese), formerly in the Farnese collection in Rome, is a massive Roman elaborated copy of a Hellenistic sculpture. It is the largest single sculpture yet recovered from antiquity. Along with the rest of the Fa ...

and the

Farnese Atlas The Farnese Atlas is a 2nd-century AD Roman marble sculpture of Atlas holding up a celestial globe. Probably a copy of an earlier work of the Hellenistic period, it is the oldest extant statue of Atlas, a Titan of Greek mythology who is repre ...

. These statues are now displayed in the

Naples National Archaeological Museum The National Archaeological Museum of Naples ( it, Museo Archeologico Nazionale di Napoli, italic=no, sometimes abbreviated to MANN) is an important Italian archaeological museum, particularly for ancient Roman remains. Its collection includes wo ...

in Italy with some in the

British Museum The British Museum is a public museum dedicated to human history, art and culture located in the Bloomsbury area of London. Its permanent collection of eight million works is among the largest and most comprehensive in existence. It docum ...

in London.

History

The items in the collection were acquired or requisitioned by Cardinal Alessandro Farnese, who became

Pope Paul III Pope Paul III ( la, Paulus III; it, Paolo III; 29 February 1468 – 10 November 1549), born Alessandro Farnese, was head of the Catholic Church and ruler of the Papal States from 13 October 1534 to his death in November 1549. He came to ...

(1534 - 1549). Classical artworks were routinely uncovered in Roman lands, and during the

Italian Renaissance The Italian Renaissance ( it, Rinascimento ) was a period in Italian history covering the 15th and 16th centuries. The period is known for the initial development of the broader Renaissance culture that spread across Europe and marked the trans ...

had become much desired. Many were family heirlooms of prominent families in Rome. Alessandro purchased the Sassi and Bernardino Fabio collections, confiscated the

Colonna The House of Colonna, also known as ''Sciarrillo'' or ''Sciarra'', is an Italian noble family, forming part of the papal nobility. It was powerful in medieval and Renaissance Rome, supplying one pope (Martin V) and many other church and pol ...

collection, and received the collection of Cardinal Federico Cesi as a donation. Other works were bought in the antiques market, including works that were appearing as part of excavations and construction throughout the city.

Michelangelo Michelangelo di Lodovico Buonarroti Simoni (; 6 March 1475 – 18 February 1564), known as Michelangelo (), was an Italian sculptor, painter, architect, and poet of the High Renaissance. Born in the Republic of Florence, his work was ins ...

had designed internal niches to display statuary in the massive Palazzo Farnese (1546) in Rome. Many of the most famous works in the Farnese collection, such as the

and the

Flora Flora is all the plant life present in a particular region or time, generally the naturally occurring ( indigenous) native plants. Sometimes bacteria and fungi are also referred to as flora, as in the terms '' gut flora'' or '' skin flora''. ...

Gladiator A gladiator ( la, gladiator, "swordsman", from , "sword") was an armed combatant who entertained audiences in the Roman Republic and Roman Empire in violent confrontations with other gladiators, wild animals, and condemned criminals. Some gla ...

Athena Athena or Athene, often given the epithet Pallas, is an ancient Greek goddess associated with wisdom, warfare, and handicraft who was later syncretized with the Roman goddess Minerva. Athena was regarded as the patron and protectress of v ...

, and others were all found at the

Baths of Caracalla , alternate_name = it, Terme di Caracalla , image = File:Baths of Caracalla, facing Caldarium.jpg , caption = The baths as viewed from the south-west. The caldarium would have been in the front of the image , coordinates = ...

. The Farnese collection was further enlarged by the Pope's nephew, another Cardinal Alessandro, by the purchase of the Del Bufalo and Cesarini collections. It also included the inheritance left in 1587 by

Margaret of Parma Margaret of Parma (; 5 July 1522 – 18 January 1586) was Governor of the Netherlands from 1559 to 1567 and from 1578 to 1582. She was the illegitimate daughter of the then 22-year-old Holy Roman Emperor Charles V and Johanna Maria van der Gh ...

, the widow first of Alessandro de Medici and then of

Ottavio Farnese Ottavio Farnese (9 October 1524 – 18 September 1586) reigned as Duke of Parma and Piacenza from 1547 until his death and Duke of Castro from 1545 to 1547 and from 1553 until his death. Biography Born in Valentano, Ottavio was the second ...

. She also possessed a collection of famous

engraved gem An engraved gem, frequently referred to as an intaglio, is a small and usually semi-precious gemstone that has been carved, in the Western tradition normally with images or inscriptions only on one face. The engraving of gemstones was a major lux ...

s, which formerly belonged to Lorenzo dei Medici, including the

, and important marble sculptures such as the

Pergamene Pergamon or Pergamum ( or ; grc-gre, Πέργαμον), also referred to by its modern Greek form Pergamos (), was a rich and powerful ancient Greek city in Mysia. It is located from the modern coastline of the Aegean Sea on a promontory on ...

statues. The Farnese’s trusted collector and antiquarian

Fulvio Orsini Fulvio Orsini (11 December 1529 – 18 May 1600) was an Italian humanist, historian, and archaeologist. He was a descendant of the Orsini family, one of the oldest, most illustrious, and for centuries most powerful of the Roman princely families, ...

aided in shopping for other works and on his death, left his collection of gems, coins and busts to

Odoardo Farnese Odoardo Farnese (28 April 1612 – 11 September 1646), also known as Odoardo I Farnese to distinguish him from his grandson Odoardo II Farnese, was Duke of Parma, Piacenza and Castro from 1622 to 1646. Biography Odoardo was the eldest legit ...

. Among the works were two statues of Hercules and two statues of Flora; the two Gladiators were placed beneath the arches of the courtyard of the Palazzo; while the

was placed in a special enclosure in the second courtyard.

Display

Inside ancient statues were arranged according to themes within the Farnese Palace. In the Gran Salone, the Sala degli Imperatori, the Sala dei Filosofi and the Galleria dei Carracci were valuable marbles. The

Annibale Carracci Annibale Carracci (; November 3, 1560 – July 15, 1609) was an Italian painter and instructor, active in Bologna and later in Rome. Along with his brother and cousin, Annibale was one of the progenitors, if not founders of a leading strand of t ...

ceiling frescoes depicting ''

The Loves of the Gods ''The Loves of the Gods'' is a monumental fresco cycle, completed by the Bolognese artist Annibale Carracci and his studio, in the Farnese Gallery which is located in the west wing of the Palazzo Farnese, now the French Embassy, in Rome. The fre ...

'' were painted not only to celebrate a wedding, but also commented on statuary in the niches below the frescoes.

Move to Naples

Paolo Monti - Servizio fotografico (Napoli, 1969) - BEIC 6356052

The Farnese family, who had become Dukes of

Parma Parma (; egl, Pärma, ) is a city in the northern Italian region of Emilia-Romagna known for its architecture, music, art, prosciutto (ham), cheese and surrounding countryside. With a population of 198,292 inhabitants, Parma is the second m ...

lost its last male heir upon the death of

Antonio Farnese Antonio Farnese (29 November 1679 – 20 January 1731) was the eighth and final Farnese Duke of Parma and Piacenza. He married, in 1727, Enrichetta d'Este of Modena with the intention of begetting an heir. The marriage, however, was childl ...

of Parma, and thus the collection passed through

Elisabetta Farnese Elisabeth Farnese (Italian: ''Elisabetta Farnese'', Spanish: ''Isabel Farnesio''; 25 October 169211 July 1766) was Queen of Spain by marriage to King Philip V. She exerted great influence over Spain's foreign policy and was the '' de facto'' ru ...

, who married King

Philip V of Spain Philip V ( es, Felipe; 19 December 1683 – 9 July 1746) was King of Spain from 1 November 1700 to 14 January 1724, and again from 6 September 1724 to his death in 1746. His total reign of 45 years is the longest in the history of the Spanish mo ...

, to their son Charles of Bourbon, who became king of Naples and the Two Sicilies in 1734. He then decided to move the Parmesan collections to Naples. His son

Ferdinand IV of Naples Ferdinand I (12 January 1751 – 4 January 1825) was the King of the Two Sicilies from 1816, after his restoration following victory in the Napoleonic Wars. Before that he had been, since 1759, Ferdinand IV of the Kingdom of Naples and Ferdinand I ...

brought the Roman collections to Naples in 1787, despite the strong opposition of the Papacy. Many of the marble sculptures were restored by

Carlo Albacini Carlo Albacini (1734 — 1813) was an Italian sculptor and restorer of Ancient Roman sculpture. He was a pupil of Bartolomeo Cavaceppi, an eminent sculptor and restorer of Rome. Albacini was notable for his copies after classical originals such ...

(1735-1813). The classical sculptures of the Farnese collections are still exhibited together at the National Archaeological Museum of Naples. Most of the paintings, on the other hand, have been moved to the

Museo di Capodimonte Museo di Capodimonte is an art museum located in the Palace of Capodimonte, a grand Bourbon palazzo in Naples, Italy. The museum is the prime repository of Neapolitan painting and decorative art, with several important works from other Italia ...

, also in Naples, with some other works from the collections moved to the museo civico and Collegio Alberoni of Piacenza, the Galleria Nazionale of Parma, and the

.British Museum Collection
/ref>

Famous items from the Farnese collection

The collection contains many copies of ancient Greek originals, and provides a broad review of classic Roman sculpture. Among the prizes of the collection are: *

(

) *

(

) *

(

) * Farnese Flora (

) * Farnese Gladiator (

) *

Venus Kallipygos The ''Venus Callipyge'', also known as the ''Aphrodite Kallipygos'' ( el, Ἀφροδίτη Καλλίπυγος) or the ''Callipygian Venus'', all literally meaning "Venus (or Aphrodite) of the beautiful buttocks", is an Ancient Roman marble stat ...

(

) *

(

) * Farnese Athena (

) * Farneses Hermes (British Museum) * Farnese Diadumenos (British Museum)

References

External links