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Giustiniani Hestia

Giustiniani Hestia is a finely executed marble sculpture, probably a Roman copy from the Hadrianic period of a bronze original dated to 470–460 BC. It is now preserved in the Torlonia collection in Rome and takes its name from its first owner, the banker Vincenzo Giustiniani. The work is notable as the only full-length marble replica of a classical bronze made for a Roman collection, reflecting Roman taste for Hellenistic Baroque forms. Its severe facial expression and ample drapery have led scholars to propose different attributions for the lost original, including Calamis. Traditionally identified as Hestia through antiquarian scholarship, it was recorded in Giustiniani inventories from the 1630s and later passed to the Torlonia family in the nineteenth century.

Giustiniani Hestia, a white marble statue of a standing woman in a long pleated robe with a mantle over her head and shoulders.
Giustiniani Hestia shown as a full-length white marble statue.
July 2024 © · Public domain
Giustiniani Hestia, a white marble statue of a veiled woman in flowing drapery with one hand raised.
The Giustiniani Hestia, shown as a standing marble figure with a veiled head and draped garments.
July 2024 © · Public domain
Giustiniani Hestia, a white marble female statue in draped garments with one hand on her hip and the other raised.
Giustiniani Hestia in the Torlonia Collection, shown as a full-length marble statue with detailed drapery and a raised hand.
May 2021 © · CC BY 3.0
Giustiniani Hestia, a white marble statue of a veiled female figure in a long pleated gown, standing with one hand on her hip and the other raised.
The Giustiniani Hestia shown in full, with its veiled figure and flowing drapery.
© · CC BY 2.0
Upper torso of the Giustiniani Hestia marble statue, showing a veiled female figure with wavy hair and draped folds across the chest.
Close-up of the Giustiniani Hestia, with its veiled head, wavy hair, and softly draped marble garment.
May 2021 © · CC BY 3.0

Identification

TitleGiustiniani Hestia
Alternative nameHestia Giustiniani
Original-language nameГестія Джустініані
TypeMarble statue
SubjectHestia, goddess of the household hearth and sacrificial fire in ancient Greek mythology

Historical context

Date of originalAbout 470–460 BC
Copy periodHadrianic period
Original work statusLost original

Creator

Original artistUnknown; various Attic or Argive sculptors have been proposed, including Calamis and perhaps Hageladas

Discovery and provenance

First known ownerVincenzo Giustiniani
Named afterVincenzo Giustiniani, its first owner
Earliest documentationDrawn for Cassiano dal Pozzo in the early 1630s; later illustrated in the Galleria Giustiniani inventory and François Perrier's Segmenta nobilium signorum et statuarum quae temporis dentem invidium evasere (1638)
First written mention1638
Inventory description"vergine vestale vestita, di marmo greco tutta antica alta palmi 9"
Ownership historySold by the Giustiniani heirs to the Torlonia family in the 19th century

Location and ownership

Former locationsPalazzo Giustiniani in Rome; Palazzo Corsini; Villa Albani; courtyard of Palazzo Torlonia on Via della Conciliazione
Inventory numberMT490
Current locationTorlonia Collection, Rome

History and restoration

RestorationRestored in the 1990s

Physical characteristics

Height193 cm
DescriptionFinely executed marble sculpture; clad female figure with a sleeveless peplos, heavy vertical folds, compact locks under a flowing veil, and a body so shrouded that the pose is relaxed only by a slight turn of the head
ConditionWholly antique

Materials

MaterialMarble
Original materialBronze

Iconography and meaning

IdentificationConventionally identified as Hestia, also described as a clothed Vestal Virgin
Comparative workAfrodite Sosandra
Stylistic featuresAustere face, intense expressiveness, and drapery that outlines the body without diminishing its vigor

Significance

Art-historical significanceA turning point in the evolution of the standing female figure in Greek sculpture
SignificanceThe only known full-length marble replica of an Early Classical Greek bronze made for a Roman collection
Artistic contextTestifies to Roman taste for the Hellenistic baroque current
Winckelmann interpretationWinckelmann used it as an example of the severe early phase of classical Greek sculpture
Context of identificationThe Hestia identification is based on antiquarian studies of the 17th and 18th centuries and may be linked to the learned circle around Cassiano dal Pozzo