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Apollino

Apollino, also known as the Medici Apollo, is a Roman copy of a Hellenistic sculpture of the adolescent god Apollo of the Apollo Lykeios type. It is now in the Uffizi, Florence. The sculpture has been linked to Praxiteles on the basis of its proportions, though other scholars see it as a Roman eclectic creation. Its left arm may once have held a bow. Found complete in Rome in the 17th century, it was first in the Borghese collection and later moved to the Medici collection at Villa Medici. It remained in Rome until 1769–70, when it was removed to accompany the Medici Niobe Group. Restored by Lorenzo Bartolini after damage in 1840, it was long admired and widely copied.

Apollino, a nude young male statue with one arm raised and a quiver beside him.
Apollino statue shown in a dynamic pose with one arm raised and a quiver visible at his side.
· CC BY 3.0
Apollino nude male statue in a white arched niche with a quiver and tree trunk support.
Apollino shown in a white arched niche on the facade of the Pavlovsk Palace.
October 2016 © · CC BY-SA 4.0
Apollino bronze nude male statue with one arm raised, standing in an arched niche beside a light yellow facade.
The Apollino statue shown in a light-colored arched niche on the palace facade.
September 2017 © · CC BY-SA 4.0
Apollino shown as a standing male nude in a classical contrapposto pose, with one arm raised and the other resting on a support with a quiver of arrows.
Apollino depicted in a monochrome drawing, shown standing in a classical pose with a tree-like support and quiver of arrows.
© Unknown authorUnknown author · Public domain
Apollino carved in relief, showing a nude male figure with one arm raised, a tree, drapery, and a lyre.
Apollino in carved relief, with a nude figure, lyre, and tree shown on the fragmented panel.
© · Public domain

Identification

TitleApollino
Alternative nameApollo Medici

Historical context

TypeRoman copy of a Hellenistic Greek sculpture
Object typeCast
Attribution hypothesisPossibly based on a work by Praxiteles, or at least in Praxitelean style
Alternative interpretationEclectic Roman-era work mixing several styles of the Second Classicism

Iconography and meaning

SubjectApollo
Sculptural typeApollo Lykeios type
Possible attributeThe left arm may have held a bow

Physical characteristics

FormNude sculpture of a man
Head proportionsSimilar to Praxiteles' Knidian Aphrodite

Location and ownership

Current locationUffizi Gallery, Florence
Current collectionUffizi Gallery collection
Observed byPercy Bysshe Shelley in the Tribuna of the Uffizi

Discovery and provenance

Documented at Villa MediciRecorded there in 1704
Transfer to FlorenceTaken to Florence in 1769–1770 with the Medici Niobe Group; not moved earlier by Cosimo III de' Medici
Initial ownershipBorghese collection
Later ownershipMedici collection at Villa Medici
Early provenanceExact early provenance is obscure
DiscoveryFound complete in Rome in the 17th century

History and restoration

ReputationHighly praised through the 18th century, but its reputation later declined
DamageBroken in 1840 at the Uffizi when a painting fell on it
Restored byLorenzo Bartolini
Restoration methodBartolini covered the whole statue with a layer of paint to disguise the repairs

Significance

Historical significanceOne of the most copied Roman sculptures
Copies madeMany 17th-, 18th-, and 19th-century copies exist

Other

Copy byJean-Baptiste Vietty
Location of copy by Jean-Baptiste ViettyMusée des Beaux-Arts de Lyon
Related workApollino Milani in the National Archaeological Museum, Florence
Related copyCopy carved by Niccolò Bazzanti at Museo Civico Revoltella, Trieste