Perseus with the Head of Medusa.

£325 · Offered by Shapero Rare Books · No longer available

A nineteenth-century albumen print depicting the bronze sculpture Perseus with the Head of Medusa by Benvenuto Cellini (1545-1554), displayed in the Loggia dei Lanzi in the Piazza della Signoria in Florence, Italy. The work depicts the mythological tale of Perseus beheading the snake-haired gorgon Medusa, whose gaze could turn men to stone. Perseus stands heroically nude except for a sash and winged sandals, triumphantly raising the gorgon's severed head in his left hand as he stands upon her decapitated body. The sculpture is thought to be the first statue since the classical period to include a figurative sculpture as the base, forming an integral part of the work. Albumen print. Very good tonal range and in good condition, pasted on original mount, photographers number in negative.

• Binding: Hardcover

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