|
(Italian
sculptor and goldsmith (b. 1500, Firenze, d. 1571, Firenze)
Benvenuto Cellini
was Goldsmith to Francis I of France from 1537 to 1545. He
completed here his first sculpture, the Salt Cellar. He imparted the
monumentality of sculpture to a goldsmith’s design. The two langorous
somatic types reflect the plethora of stucco work (polished like marble
to imitate Roman techniques) produced by Rosso Fiorentino and Francesco
Primaticcio at Fontainebleau. The style of the School of Fontainebleau
and Italian Maniera is characterized by an elongation and abstraction of
the poised rather than moving body, creating an unnatural elegance and
sophistication.
The
cellar’s iconography reads like a programme for sculpture. The goddess
of earth, holding her breast and a cornucopia to signify her nutritive
powers, is flanked by a miniature Ionic temple for pepper corns. The god
of the sea (Neptune), with trident and shell chariot, is flanked by a
boat for salt. The elaborate ebony base is decorated with cartouches of
reclining figures. They represent the four times of day alternating with
four winds of seasons.
Practical
yet capricious, the cellar is a Mannerist masterpiece.
|
