The Sculpture Museum - Catalog - Page 57
fig. 1
Roman, Emperor Marcus Aurelius,
c. 161–180 ad, bronze, 424 cm high
Rome, Musei Capitolini, inv. no. MC3247
The present equestrian monument of Emperor Marcus Aurelius is exceptional
amongst the known models after the Roman bronze for its size, material and for
the extraordinary quality of its finish. A characteristic that appears unique to it is
the inscription on the base, in Italian, which reads ‘The people will be happy when
they will have philosophers as kings or when their kings will be philosophers’. A
reference to the Greek philosopher Plato’s concept of the ‘philosopher-king’ as the
most desirable form of government (Republic, Book VI), it came to be associated
with Marcus Aurelius on account of his having been both an emperor and a
philosopher.
Carved in statuary marble, this model of the Capitoline monument beautifully
and attentively captures every anatomical and decorative detail of the prototype,
from the torsion of the horse’s neck and the veins on its muzzle to the solemn
expression in the Emperor’s face and the elaborate design of his saddle. This
suggests our artist was able to observe the bronze first-hand in Rome, fully taking
in its sense of grandeur and movement. An accomplished sculptor, he rendered
skilfully the folds in the Emperor’s robes, the deeply carved curls in his hair and
beard, and the potent tension in the horse’s stride. Perfectly aware of the different
precautions required for sculpting in marble as opposed to casting in bronze, he
inserted in the composition the armour of a defeated enemy – taken from images
of Roman triumphs – which bears the weight of the composition in the centre,
and added small supports to secure the horse’s legs and tail.
The crisp, confident quality of the modelling and the observant approach
to the prototype discernible in our sculpture indicate that it was carved in a
Roman workshop in the second half of the eighteenth century. Amongst the
finest and most important of these was that of Carlo Albacini (1739– after 1807),
with whose style the present Marcus Aurelius displays close parallels. A pupil of
Bartolomeo Cavaceppi, Albacini specialized in copies after the Antique of the
highest refinement, destined for the wealthiest and most sophisticated Grand
Tour travellers, but also in restoring antiquities, such as those in the prestigious
Farnese collection. In 1783 he was accepted as an “accademico di merito” in
the Accademia di San Luca, Rome’s prestigious academy of arts. The Empress
of Russia, Catherine II, is portrayed in a full-length statue by Albacini, whose
works were in high demand at her court. She also commissioned from him
the funerary monument to the great painter Anton Rafael Mengs (1780) in the
church of Santi Michele e Magno in Rome. Greatly admired within the milieu of
English antiquarians and collectors in Rome, Albacini often collaborated with the
art dealer Thomas Jenkins, and worked for prominent patrons such as Charles
Townley, Henry Blundell and the Marquess of Lansdowne.
