The Spada ‘Aristotle’
- Title:
- The Spada ‘Aristotle’
- Collection:
- Cornell Cast Collection
- Creator:
- Unknown
- Photographer:
- Alexandridis, Annetta
- Date:
- ca. 1890-1910
ca. 3rd c. BCE
2008 (image)
- Location:
- Warehouse
- ID Number:
- CCC_0128
- Accession Number:
- 43 incised on left hand side
128 - File Name:
- CCC_0128.tif
- Original Measurements:
- 128 (H) cm
- Culture:
- Greek
- Style/Period:
- Hellenistic
- Work Type:
- casts (sculpture)
- Materials/Techniques:
- plaster cast (sculpture)
marble sculpture in the round (original) - Subject:
- Aristippus, 435 B.C.?-356 B.C.?
Aristotle - Image View Type:
- overall
- Image View Description:
- from side
- Measurement:
- 120 x 50 x 87 (centimeters, height x width x diameter)
- Description:
- This is a cast of the so-called Spada Aristotle, a seated male figure of the philosopher type that has been perhaps more accurately identified as the fifth/fourth century BCE philosopher Aristippos. The figure sits with his left foot slightly advanced and his right foot back. He is draped in a himation that leaves the right side of his chest bare and wears sandals. He leans forward to rest his right elbow on his right knee and he rests his draped left forearm on his left upper thigh. In the original, the philosopher supports his head with his right hand at the jaw and looks towards the ground. The head of this cast is missing and there is a metal dowel projecting from the neck at the join. The original identification of the figure as Aristotle and the later identification as Aristippos have been based on the partially preserved Greek inscription on the statue's base that reads "ARIST". The original work has been fitted with a late Republican or early Imperial Roman portrait head in veristic style that does not belong with the body. Additionally, the right arm and hand, much of the left leg, and parts of the drapery have been restored.
- Notes:
- Items in the Cornell Cast Collection are meant for inventory and reference purposes. Metadata may not be complete in all cases.
- Bibliography:
- Gisela Richter, The Portraits of the Greeks, vol. II (London: Phaidon Press, 1965), 175-176, fig. 1018
Katharine A. Esdaile, "A Bronze Statuette in the British Museum and the 'Aristotle' of the Palazzo Spada," JHS 34 (1914), 47-59 - Repository:
- Cornell University (current)
Rome, Spada Gallery (original) - Collecting Program:
- Cornell Collections of Antiquities
- Format:
- Image
- Rights:
- The images in the Cornell Collection of Antiquities: Casts are protected by copyright, and the copyright holders are their creators, generally Cornell University Library, Annetta Alexandridis, and Verity Platt. This collection of plaster casts owned by Cornell University was photographed by Cornell University Library, Alexandridis, Platt, and Andreya L. Mihaloew from 2010-2015, with funding from a Digital Collections in Arts and Sciences Grant to Annetta Alexandridis. Cornell is providing access to the materials for research and personal use. The written permission of any copyright and other rights holders is required for distribution, reproduction, or other use that extends beyond what is authorized by fair use and other statutory exemptions. Responsibility for making an independent legal assessment of an item and securing any necessary permissions ultimately rests with persons desiring to use the item. Please contact Annetta Alexandridis and Verity Platt for more information about this collection, or to request permission to use these images.