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Bacchus

Bacchus is a marble sculpture by Michelangelo, made in Rome in 1496–1497 and measuring 203 cm high. It is now in the Museo Nazionale del Bargello in Florence. The work reflects Michelangelo’s response to ancient sculpture and to discoveries from excavations in Rome. Contemporary descriptions emphasized its sensual, androgynous character and its link to classical hedonism. The figure includes a satyr-like reference to Silenus, the teacher of Bacchus, while the flayed skin and grapes symbolize life over death. Commissioned by Cardinal Riario and later rejected, it was kept in the garden of the banker Jacopo Galli, drawn by Maarten van Heemskerck around 1532, and later acquired by Francesco I de’ Medici in 1572.

Michelangelo’s Bacchus, a marble statue of a nude male figure holding a goblet and grapes with a small satyr beside him.
Michelangelo’s Bacchus shown in a sepia-toned photograph of the marble statue.
© · Public domain
Marble statue of Bacchus with a small satyr at his side, holding a cup and wearing a grape wreath.
Bacchus, shown with a small satyr beside him, in a sepia-toned photograph of the sculpture.
© Rijksmuseum · CC0
Bacchus statue with grapes in his hair, raising a cup and standing beside a crouching figure reaching for grapes.
Bacchus stands with a cup raised overhead, accompanied by a crouching figure reaching toward the grapes.
1905 © · No restrictions
Bacchus sculpture of a nude male figure standing on a pedestal with a staff and raised right hand, set against a large tapestry backdrop.
Bacchus stands on a pedestal in front of a large tapestry backdrop.
© · CC BY-SA 3.0
Bacchus, a muscular figure holding grapes, with a satyr clinging to his leg
Bacchus shown with a satyr at his leg and grapes in his hand.
1532 © Maarten van Heemskerck · Public domain

Identification

TitleBacchus
TypeFree-standing marble sculpture
Alternative titlesBaco; Bacco; Drunken Bacchus

Historical context

Date made1496–1497
Place of creationRome
Commission datec. 1496
Commissioned forCardinal Raffaele Riario's collection
Cultural contextSeen as something Savonarola and his followers tried to suppress in Florence
Stylistic inspirationClassical antiquity; possibly Pliny the Elder's account in Natural History of a lost bronze by Praxiteles depicting Bacchus, drunkenness, and a satyr

Creator

ArtistMichelangelo Buonarroti
Artist descriptionItalian High Renaissance sculptor, painter, architect, and poet
Intended styleall'antica, in the antique/classical style

Discovery and provenance

Moved to FlorenceDuring the 17th century, to the grand ducal collections (Uffizi)
Subsequent ownerJacopo Galli
Acquired by Francesco I de' Medici1571 or 1572, for 240 ducats
Early display contextPlaced among antique and fragmentary Roman works, including an ancient torso and Roman relief fragments
Early display locationThe garden of Jacopo Galli in Rome
Commission outcomeRejected by Cardinal Raffaele Riario after completion

Location and ownership

Current locationMuseo Nazionale del Bargello, Florence, Italy
Current display locationSala di Michelangelo
Moved to current location1873

Physical characteristics

Anatomical featuresAndrogynous, with swollen breast and abdomen and swollen testicles
Center of gravityHigh
PoseStanding but swaying and leaning backward in a precarious, staggering pose
SizeSlightly larger than life-size
Height203 cm
Sculptural formSculpture in the round

Materials

MaterialMarble

Appearance

Facial expressionEyes rolled back and mouth open
CrownWreath of grapevine leaves and ivy leaves
Right hand attributeCup of wine
Left hand attributeTiger skin
Associated figureA satyr seated behind Bacchus, eating grapes slipping from Bacchus's left hand
Condition shown in early depictionsThe right hand was missing in the 1530s; the penis was already broken/chiseled away

History and restoration

Damage and restorationThe right hand holding the cup was broken off before the 1530s and restored in the early 1550s; the penis was also broken or chiseled away before the 1530s

Iconography and meaning

SymbolismThe grapes, tiger skin, vine crown, and unstable pose evoke intoxication, sensuality, and classical hedonism; the figure is also read as embodying life over death
InterpretationThe sculpture evokes sexuality in an androgynous form
Associated meaningThe satyr refers to Silenus, Bacchus's teacher
SubjectBacchus, the Roman god of wine, shown drunk

Significance

Art-historical significanceConsidered Michelangelo's first great masterpiece by Ascanio Condivi and one of his few surviving secular works
Historical significanceOne of only two surviving sculptures from Michelangelo's first Roman period, together with the Pietà
ReceptionContemporary and later criticism noted its unsettling, non-idealized drunkenness; Percy Bysshe Shelley found it crude and revolting, while Johannes Wilde summarized the response as 'it is not the image of a god'

Other

Drawing evidenceMaarten van Heemskerck drew the sculpture around 1532, showing it missing the right hand
Print evidenceIt also appears in a print by Cornelis Bos with the right hand missing
Literary receptionFrancisco de Holanda reported seeing it presented as an ancient work but judged it not ancient because of the hands and unstable contrapposto
Influence on later worksIts precarious high-centre-of-gravity effect reappears in later works by Michelangelo, especially the David and the Sistine Chapel ceiling figures