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Bacchus (Michelangelo)
Encyclopedia
Bacchus is a marble sculpture
by the Italian
High Renaissance
sculptor, painter, architect and poet Michelangelo
. The statue is somewhat over life-size and depicts Bacchus
, the Roman god of wine
, in a revolutionary inebriated
state. Along with the Pietà
it is one of only two sculptures that can be attributed with any certainty to the artist's first period in Rome
.
Bacchus is depicted with rolling eyes, his staggering body almost teetering off the rocky outcrop on which he stands. Sitting behind him is a faun
, who eats the bunch of grapes slipping out of Bacchus's left hand. With its swollen breast and abdomen, the Bacchus figure suggested to Giorgio Vasari
"both the slenderness of a young man and the fleshiness and roundness of a woman", and its androgynous
quality has often been noted (although the testicles are swollen as well). The inspiration for the work appears to be the description in Pliny the Elder
's Natural History of a lost bronze sculpture
by Praxiteles
, depicting "Bacchus, Drunkenness and a satyr
".
Michelangelo gave the sculpture a high centre of gravity and reeling pose which, along with the symbolic wreath of vines, gives the impression of drink having 'gone to his head'. Similarly precarious poses can be found in a number of later works by the artist, most notably the David and the figures on the Sistine Chapel ceiling
, but the Bacchus was unprecedented, "in brief... it is not the image of a god".
In his right hand Bacchus holds a goblet of wine and in his left a tiger
skin, an animal associated with the god "for its love of the grape" (according to Michelangelo's biographer Ascanio Condivi
). The hand holding the goblet was broken off and the penis chiseled away before Martin Heemskerck saw the sculpture in the 1530s. Only the goblet was restored, in the early 1550s. The mutilation may have been to give the sculpture an illusion of greater antiquity, placed as it initially was among an antique torso and fragmentary Roman reliefs in Jacopo Galli's Roman garden. Such a concession to 'classical' sensibilities did not, however, convince Percy Bysshe Shelley
of the work's fidelity to "the spirit and meaning of Bacchus". He wrote that "It looks drunken, brutal, and narrow-minded, and has an expression of dissoluteness the most revolting."
The statue was commissioned for the garden of Cardinal Raffaele Riario
who intended for it to complement his collection of classical sculptures. It was rejected by Cardinal Riario and by 1506 found its way to the collection of Jacopo Galli, banker to both the cardinal and Michelangelo, who had a similar garden near the Palazzo della Cancelleria
. There it first appeared in a drawing by Martin Heemskerck, c. 1533-36. The statue was bought for the Medici
and transferred to Florence
in 1572.
Marble sculpture
Marble sculpture is the art of creating three-dimensional forms from marble. Sculpture is among the oldest of the arts. Even before painting cave walls, early humans fashioned shapes from stone. From these beginnings, artifacts have evolved to their current complexity...
by the Italian
Italy
Italy , officially the Italian Republic languages]] under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. In each of these, Italy's official name is as follows:;;;;;;;;), is a unitary parliamentary republic in South-Central Europe. To the north it borders France, Switzerland, Austria and...
High Renaissance
High Renaissance
The expression High Renaissance, in art history, is a periodizing convention used to denote the apogee of the visual arts in the Italian Renaissance...
sculptor, painter, architect and poet Michelangelo
Michelangelo
Michelangelo di Lodovico Buonarroti Simoni , commonly known as Michelangelo, was an Italian Renaissance painter, sculptor, architect, poet, and engineer who exerted an unparalleled influence on the development of Western art...
. The statue is somewhat over life-size and depicts Bacchus
Dionysus
Dionysus was the god of the grape harvest, winemaking and wine, of ritual madness and ecstasy in Greek mythology. His name in Linear B tablets shows he was worshipped from c. 1500—1100 BC by Mycenean Greeks: other traces of Dionysian-type cult have been found in ancient Minoan Crete...
, the Roman god of wine
Wine
Wine is an alcoholic beverage, made of fermented fruit juice, usually from grapes. The natural chemical balance of grapes lets them ferment without the addition of sugars, acids, enzymes, or other nutrients. Grape wine is produced by fermenting crushed grapes using various types of yeast. Yeast...
, in a revolutionary inebriated
Drunkenness
Alcohol intoxication is a physiological state that occurs when a person has a high level of ethanol in his or her blood....
state. Along with the Pietà
Pietà (Michelangelo)
The Pietà is a masterpiece of Renaissance sculpture by Michelangelo Buonarroti, housed in St. Peter's Basilica in Vatican City. It is the first of a number of works of the same theme by the artist. The statue was commissioned for the French cardinal Jean de Billheres, who was a representative in...
it is one of only two sculptures that can be attributed with any certainty to the artist's first period in Rome
Rome
Rome is the capital of Italy and the country's largest and most populated city and comune, with over 2.7 million residents in . The city is located in the central-western portion of the Italian Peninsula, on the Tiber River within the Lazio region of Italy.Rome's history spans two and a half...
.
Bacchus is depicted with rolling eyes, his staggering body almost teetering off the rocky outcrop on which he stands. Sitting behind him is a faun
Faun
The faun is a rustic forest god or place-spirit of Roman mythology often associated with Greek satyrs and the Greek god Pan.-Origins:...
, who eats the bunch of grapes slipping out of Bacchus's left hand. With its swollen breast and abdomen, the Bacchus figure suggested to Giorgio Vasari
Giorgio Vasari
Giorgio Vasari was an Italian painter, writer, historian, and architect, who is famous today for his biographies of Italian artists, considered the ideological foundation of art-historical writing.-Biography:...
"both the slenderness of a young man and the fleshiness and roundness of a woman", and its androgynous
Androgyny
Androgyny is a term derived from the Greek words ανήρ, stem ανδρ- and γυνή , referring to the combination of masculine and feminine characteristics...
quality has often been noted (although the testicles are swollen as well). The inspiration for the work appears to be the description in Pliny the Elder
Pliny the Elder
Gaius Plinius Secundus , better known as Pliny the Elder, was a Roman author, naturalist, and natural philosopher, as well as naval and army commander of the early Roman Empire, and personal friend of the emperor Vespasian...
's Natural History of a lost bronze sculpture
Bronze sculpture
Bronze is the most popular metal for cast metal sculptures; a cast bronze sculpture is often called simply a "bronze".Common bronze alloys have the unusual and desirable property of expanding slightly just before they set, thus filling the finest details of a mold. Then, as the bronze cools, it...
by Praxiteles
Praxiteles
Praxiteles of Athens, the son of Cephisodotus the Elder, was the most renowned of the Attic sculptors of the 4th century BC. He was the first to sculpt the nude female form in a life-size statue...
, depicting "Bacchus, Drunkenness and a satyr
Satyr
In Greek mythology, satyrs are a troop of male companions of Pan and Dionysus — "satyresses" were a late invention of poets — that roamed the woods and mountains. In myths they are often associated with pipe-playing....
".
Michelangelo gave the sculpture a high centre of gravity and reeling pose which, along with the symbolic wreath of vines, gives the impression of drink having 'gone to his head'. Similarly precarious poses can be found in a number of later works by the artist, most notably the David and the figures on the Sistine Chapel ceiling
Sistine Chapel ceiling
The Sistine Chapel ceiling, painted by Michelangelo between 1508 and 1512, at the commission of Pope Julius II, is a cornerstone work of High Renaissance art. The ceiling is that of the large Papal Chapel built within the Vatican between 1477 and 1480 by Pope Sixtus IV after whom it is named...
, but the Bacchus was unprecedented, "in brief... it is not the image of a god".
In his right hand Bacchus holds a goblet of wine and in his left a tiger
Tiger
The tiger is the largest cat species, reaching a total body length of up to and weighing up to . Their most recognizable feature is a pattern of dark vertical stripes on reddish-orange fur with lighter underparts...
skin, an animal associated with the god "for its love of the grape" (according to Michelangelo's biographer Ascanio Condivi
Ascanio Condivi
Ascanio Condivi was an Italian painter and writer. Generally regarded as a mediocre artist, he is primarily remembered as the biographer of Michelangelo.-Biography:...
). The hand holding the goblet was broken off and the penis chiseled away before Martin Heemskerck saw the sculpture in the 1530s. Only the goblet was restored, in the early 1550s. The mutilation may have been to give the sculpture an illusion of greater antiquity, placed as it initially was among an antique torso and fragmentary Roman reliefs in Jacopo Galli's Roman garden. Such a concession to 'classical' sensibilities did not, however, convince Percy Bysshe Shelley
Percy Bysshe Shelley
Percy Bysshe Shelley was one of the major English Romantic poets and is critically regarded as among the finest lyric poets in the English language. Shelley was famous for his association with John Keats and Lord Byron...
of the work's fidelity to "the spirit and meaning of Bacchus". He wrote that "It looks drunken, brutal, and narrow-minded, and has an expression of dissoluteness the most revolting."
The statue was commissioned for the garden of Cardinal Raffaele Riario
Raffaele Riario
Raffaele Sansoni Galeoti Riario was an Italian Cardinal of the Renaissance, mainly known as the constructor of the Palazzo della Cancelleria and the one who invited Michelangelo to Rome. He was a patron of the arts...
who intended for it to complement his collection of classical sculptures. It was rejected by Cardinal Riario and by 1506 found its way to the collection of Jacopo Galli, banker to both the cardinal and Michelangelo, who had a similar garden near the Palazzo della Cancelleria
Palazzo della Cancelleria
The Palazzo della Cancelleria is a Renaissance palace in Rome, Italy, situated between the present Corso Vittorio Emanuele II and the Campo de' Fiori, in the rione of Parione...
. There it first appeared in a drawing by Martin Heemskerck, c. 1533-36. The statue was bought for the Medici
Medici
The House of Medici or Famiglia de' Medici was a political dynasty, banking family and later royal house that first began to gather prominence under Cosimo de' Medici in the Republic of Florence during the late 14th century. The family originated in the Mugello region of the Tuscan countryside,...
and transferred to Florence
Florence
Florence is the capital city of the Italian region of Tuscany and of the province of Florence. It is the most populous city in Tuscany, with approximately 370,000 inhabitants, expanding to over 1.5 million in the metropolitan area....
in 1572.