Valerio Cioli1529–1599Narcissus
May one see it?
Yes, receiving visitors
London, United Kingdom
RoomMedieval & Renaissance, Room 50a, The Paul and Jill Ruddock Gallery
On public display.
- Checked
- In this state since
- Source
- The museum
About the sculpture
Narcissus is shown as a youth returning from a hunt. He stops to look into a pool of water and is mesmerised by his reflection, which he has never seen before. He falls in love with the beautiful image he sees and then cannot stop looking. This may have originally been the centrepiece for a fountain, and therefore shown the figure gazing into an actual pool of water.
Read on
When discovered in Florence this statue was identified as a statue of Cupid carved by Michelangelo which was thought to be lost. For many years after its acquisition by the V&A it was one of the most celebrated works in the Museum because of this attribution. It has since been identified as an ancient Roman copy of a classical model. It was extensively recut in the sixteenth century, with the head being added at this time, and is thought to be the work of the Florentine sculptor Valerio Cioli (ca. 1529 - 1599), who was a restorer of classical sculptures. The raised left arm dates from the nineteenth century.
Victoria and Albert Museum
Particulars
- Accession number
- 7560-1861
What it shows
In the catalog
Sources
- Victoria and Albert Museum
- Image: Victoria and Albert Museum — © Victoria and Albert Museum, London
