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Kanaris at Chios

Kanaris at Chios, also known as The Kanaris Brothers or The Sailors of the English Garden, is a marble sculpture by Benedetto Civiletti, made in Palermo in 1878. It depicts Konstantínos Kanáris in the foreground and Andréas Pipínos at Chios as they sailed in a fireship toward the Ottoman admiral Nasuhzade Ali Pacha’s vessel. The work refers to the burning of the Ottoman flagship off Chios during the Greek War of Independence, carried out in retaliation for the Chios massacre two months earlier. Bought by Prince Humbert of Savoy after its exhibition in Palermo, it was later shown in Paris, where it won a gold medal at the 1878 Exposition Universelle. It is now displayed in a small neo-Moorish pavilion in the English Garden, now called Piersanti Mattarella Garden, in Palermo.

Kanaris at Chios marble sculpture showing two muscular, bare-chested men, one seated with a coiled rope and nautical tool while the other leans over his shoulder
Kanaris at Chios depicted in a marble sculpture of two bare-chested men, one seated with a rope and nautical implement.
© Tupper, William Vaughn, 1835-1898 · Public domain
Kanaris at Chios, a marble sculpture of two bare-chested men, one seated with ropes and the other leaning over his shoulder.
Kanaris at Chios shown in a historic photograph of the marble sculpture.
© Rijksmuseum · CC0
Marble sculpture of Kanaris at Chios showing two muscular sailors with nautical details.
Kanaris at Chios, a marble sculpture depicting two muscular sailors with nautical symbols.
© · Public domain
Kanaris at Chios marble sculpture of two muscular male figures outdoors, with one seated and the other standing behind him.
Kanaris at Chios, a marble sculpture showing two male figures outdoors among dense foliage.
© Civiletti, Benedetto (Italian sculptor, 1845-1899) (artist) · Public domain
Kanaris brothers monument with two classical male figures in a garden, with a young man standing beside it
The Kanaris brothers monument stands among the plants in Palermo’s English Garden.
© · Public domain

Identification

TitleKanaris at Chios
Alternative namesThe Kanaris brothers; The sailors of the English Garden; Les frères Kanaris; Les marins du Jardin anglais; I fratelli Kanaris; I marinai del Giardino Inglese
Original-language titleKanaris a Scio
TypeMarble sculpture

Creator

ArtistBenedetto Civiletti

Historical context

Date of creation1878
Place of creationPalermo, Sicily, Italy

Materials

MaterialMarble
Original materialStucco
Later materialMarble copy

Iconography and meaning

Political interpretationMay have resonated with Italian nationalist feeling after unification; later also read as reflecting anarchist patriotism
Related artistic contextConnected with Romantic responses to the Greek War of Independence, including works by Eugène Delacroix, Gioachino Rossini, Victor Hugo, Percy Bysshe Shelley, and Lord Byron
InspirationApparently inspired by Angelo Brofferio's recently published Scene Elleniche antica e nuova Grecia
Outcome of depicted eventAbout 2,000 Ottoman sailors were killed, including Nasuhzade Ali Pasha
Ottoman admiralNasuhzade Ali Pasha
Historical contextA reprisal for the Chios massacre two months earlier
Depicted event dateNight of 6–7 June 1822
Depicted subjectThe burning of the Ottoman flagship off Chios during the Greek War of Independence
Depicted figuresKonstantinos Kanaris in the foreground; Andreas Pipinos

Discovery and provenance

First exhibitionPalermo, 1875
First purchaserPrince Umberto di Savoia
AcquisitionBought by Prince Umberto di Savoia during its exhibition in Palermo
Later exhibitionParis, 1878
AwardGold medal at the 1878 Exposition Universelle in Paris
DonationPrince Umberto di Savoia donated the marble copy to the Comune of Palermo

Location and ownership

Original display locationGardens of Villa Giulia, Palermo
Current locationA small Neo-Moorish pavilion in the Giardino Inglese, now renamed Piersanti Mattarella Park
PlacementInstalled in a pavilion
Pavilion styleNeo-Moorish

History and restoration

Current conditionDisplayed in a vandalized state