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Bust of Cardinal Alessandro Peretti

The Bust of Alessandro Peretti di Montalto is a portrait sculpture by the Italian artist Gian Lorenzo Bernini, executed in 1622 and 1623. Now in the Kunsthalle Hamburg in Germany, it was long considered lost and did not appear in Rudolf Wittkower’s 1955 catalogue of Bernini’s sculptures. Identified in the 1980s, it is now considered an authentic work by Bernini. Art historians have praised its expressive force and naturalistic details, including the hair of the unshaven cheeks, the fleshly lower lip, and the pockmarks beside the nose. The bust is also noted for the vitality and refinement Bernini brought to formal ecclesiastical portraiture.

Marble bust of Cardinal Alessandro Peretti, showing a balding man with a mustache and small beard.
Marble bust of Cardinal Alessandro Peretti displayed on a decorative plinth.
© · Public domain
White marble bust of Cardinal Alessandro Peretti in profile against a dark background.
A white marble bust of Cardinal Alessandro Peretti shown in profile.
July 2012 © · CC BY-SA 3.0
Lower portion of Cardinal Alessandro Peretti’s white marble bust, showing draped folds and a decorated pedestal base.
Lower section of Cardinal Alessandro Peretti’s marble bust, resting on an ornate pedestal.
July 2012 © · CC BY-SA 3.0
Close-up of Cardinal Alessandro Peretti’s marble ear and wavy hair with a faint yellow stain on the stone.
Close-up detail of Cardinal Alessandro Peretti’s marble sculpture showing the ear and intricately carved hair.
July 2012 © · CC BY-SA 3.0
Close-up of two intricately carved spherical elements set in a light surface recess.
Close-up detail from Cardinal Alessandro Peretti sculpture, showing two carved spherical elements in a pale recess.
July 2012 © · CC BY-SA 3.0

Identification

TypePortrait sculpture; bust
TitleBust of Cardinal Alessandro Peretti Montalto

Historical context

Relationship to patronBernini had previously made Neptune and Triton for Cardinal Montalto's gardens at Villa Montalto and knew the cardinal
Date made1622–1623
Date of subject's death1623

Creator

ArtistGian Lorenzo Bernini
Artist nationalityItalian
SubjectCardinal Alessandro Peretti Montalto

Discovery and provenance

RediscoveryRediscovered in Hamburg in the 1960s
Identification statusLong considered lost; identified in the 1980s
Scholarship statusNot included in Rudolf Wittkower's 1955 catalogue of Bernini's sculptures; now considered an authentic work by Bernini
Provenance before 1910Recorded at Villa Montalto in the early 1660s and at Casa Peretti in 1682
AcquisitionAfter 1910, donated to the Kunsthalle Hamburg as part of the collection of Sir John Henry Schroder

Location and ownership

Current locationKunsthalle Hamburg, Hamburg, Germany

Physical characteristics

StyleA noble, regal bearing
CharacterizationVitality and refinement
Naturalistic detailsFine hair on the unshaven cheeks, fleshy lower lip, and pockmarks flanking the nose
ExpressionAn expression of deep thought and concentration that gives the bust a strong sense of animation

Materials

MaterialMarble

Technique

ConstructionThe pedestal and bust were carved from a single block of marble, rather than separately
Sculptural processCarving the pedestal and bust from one block allowed Bernini to determine their dimensions together; this also wasted a great deal of marble

History and restoration

PurposeThe reason for the bust is unclear
Possible functionIt may have been made as part of a funerary tomb
Alternative commission hypothesisMontalto may have commissioned the bust before his death
Possible datingPossibly posthumous, after the cardinal's death