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Statue of Giovanni delle Bande Nere

The Statue of Giovanni delle Bande Nere is an Italian Renaissance marble sculpture by Baccio Bandinelli and his workshop. It stands in Piazza San Lorenzo in Florence, Tuscany, Italy. Work on the monument began in 1540 and continued until after 1560. Although the base and statue were always intended to be together, they were not placed together until 1850. Giovanni is shown seated somewhat uncomfortably, wearing a metallic cuirass and holding a baton of command on his knee, without a helmet or army boots. The plinth is richly decorated with festoons, bucranium, Doric columns, and bas-reliefs, including scenes of soldiers bringing booty and captives before a ruler and the Medici coat of arms.

Giovanni delle Bande Nere statue on an ornate pedestal in a busy square with bicycles and pedestrians nearby.
The statue of Giovanni delle Bande Nere stands on an elaborately carved pedestal in Florence\'s Piazza San Lorenzo.
April 2019 © · CC BY-SA 2.0
Giovanni delle Bande Nere statue seated in classical armor on an ornate pedestal
The Giovanni delle Bande Nere monument shows a seated armored figure on a tall carved pedestal.
© · CC BY 3.0
Statue of Giovanni delle Bande Nere seated on an ornate pedestal beside a historic building
The statue of Giovanni delle Bande Nere stands on an ornate pedestal in Piazza di San Lorenzo beside the Basilica of San Lorenzo.
April 2010 © · CC BY-SA 4.0
Giovanni delle Bande Nere statue lit at night, seated in armor on an ornate pedestal.
The Giovanni delle Bande Nere monument illuminated at night beside the Basilica di San Lorenzo.
March 2020 © · CC BY-SA 4.0
Marble relief from Giovanni delle Bande Nere monument showing classical figures in struggle and supplication.
Marble relief on the monument to Giovanni delle Bande Nere, depicting figures in a scene of struggle and clemency.
© · Attribution

Identification

TitleMonument to Giovanni delle Bande Nere
TypeMonument / statue
SubjectGiovanni delle Bande Nere (1498–1526), Medici condottiero and father of Cosimo I de' Medici
Alternative titleMonumento a Giovanni delle Bande Nere

Historical context

Original intended locationInside the Neroni Chapel in the Basilica of San Lorenzo, Florence
Design presentedPresented to the duke in 1540
Contract termsA statue of the condottiero and two reliefs in the pedestal, to be completed within two years
Purpose of commissionTo commemorate Giovanni delle Bande Nere
Commissioned byCosimo I de' Medici
Commission date1540

Creator

SculptorBaccio Bandinelli and his workshop
Scholarship attributionBaccio Bandinelli
Work period1540 to after 1560

Discovery and provenance

Completion status at artist's deathThe ensemble was still far from complete when Bandinelli died in 1560; the bas-reliefs remained unfinished
Initial installationPlaced in the Sala Grande of Palazzo Vecchio in 1592
Base historyThe pedestal remained for a long time in the Neroni Chapel in the Basilica of San Lorenzo, then was moved to the Piazza in 1620 by order of Cosimo II de' Medici
Later installationThe statue, kept in Palazzo Vecchio, was placed on the pedestal in 1850 under the direction of engineer Alessandro Manetti
Relocation in Piazza San LorenzoMoved closer to the church steps in 1939 during the rearrangement of Piazza San Lorenzo

History and restoration

ControversyFrom the start, the statue was controversial because it was debated whether an armed soldier should serve as a monument in a church, and whether it was appropriate to depict Giovanni seated
Fountain conversionIn 1812 Giuseppe Del Rosso transformed the pedestal into a fountain for public utility, allowing people to water animals there
Restoration historyA first undocumented restoration, probably in the 1960s, followed by another worksite opened in 1995; a further restoration of the whole monument began in 2012

Physical characteristics

PoseSeated, somewhat uncomfortably
Object heldA command staff or baton of command resting on his knee; also interpreted as a broken spear or the projectile that killed him
Pedestal shapeAlmost cubic
BasinLarge ellipsoidal marble basin
Clothing and armorWearing a metallic cuirass / Roman-style lorica musculata over his torso, without a helmet or army boots

Materials

Main materialMarble, including white Carrara marble
Fountain basin materialCarrara marble
Pedestal and basin materialCarrara marble

Appearance

Inscriptions and namesThe pedestal was commonly called the 'Base of San Lorenzo'; a 19th-century plaque refers to it by that name and says the monument was restored in 1850 to host the statue
Relief subjectSoldiers bringing prisoners and booty to their captain; coats of arms and Medici emblems on the short sides
Symbolic referenceThe lion head alludes to the Florentine marzocco
Fountain detailsA white Carrara marble lion head from which water flows
Pedestal decorationDoric columns at the corners, a heavy cornice, and an upper molding with bucrania, garlands, a twisted torus, and a Greek-key plinth

Location and ownership

Current locationPiazza San Lorenzo, Florence, Tuscany, Italy
Associated siteSan Lorenzo

Significance

Purpose of decorative programAccording to Bandinelli, the pedestal decoration was conceived as a base for the statue

Other

NicknameGran Capitano Ebbe