Den lyrespillende Amor

1797–1838

“Restores” the Aegina marbles for Prince Ludwig

In his Roman workshop in the Palazzo Barberini Thorvaldsen “restored” the recently discovered Aegina marbles, adding lost arms and heads. On his recommendation the fragments were bought by Prince Ludwig of Bavaria, the future King Ludwig I; the reconstructed pediment groups of the Aegina temple can now be seen in Munich’s Glyptothek.

1797–1838

The Roman years: a home, a workshop and a mentor

In Rome Thorvaldsen lived at the Casa Buti on the Via Sistina, in front of the Spanish Steps, and had his workshop in the stables of the Palazzo Barberini. He also studied with another Dane, Asmus Jacob Carstens, whose handling of classical themes became a source of inspiration.

1819

A triumphal visit to Copenhagen

In 1819 Thorvaldsen visited his native Denmark, and the visit to Copenhagen turned into a genuine triumphal procession. He was also received with enthusiasm in Vienna, Berlin and Warsaw.

1819

Commission for statues of Christ and the Twelve Apostles

In Denmark Thorvaldsen was commissioned to make a colossal series of statues of Christ and the Twelve Apostles for the rebuilding of the Church of Our Lady, destroyed in the British bombardment of Copenhagen in 1807. The statues were executed after his return to Rome and completed only in 1838.

29 March 1819

Proposes to Frances Mackenzie; the engagement is broken

On 29 March 1819 Thorvaldsen proposed to Miss Mackenzie, but a month later the engagement was cancelled: he had fallen in love with another woman, Fanny Caspers. Torn between Mackenzie and Anna Maria von Uhden, the mother of his daughter, he never succeeded in making Caspers his wife.

1822

The foremost sculptor after Canova’s death

Thorvaldsen’s work was often compared with Canova’s; after Canova’s death in 1822 he became the foremost artist in neoclassical sculpture.