Medal, Italy, ca. 1464
Record status
Individual type · partial
Period
ca. 1464
Medal in the Victoria and Albert Museum, London (museum number 662-1865), made in Italy, dated ca. 1464, attributed to Sperandio. The museum's brief description reads: Medal, gilt bronze, bust of Lodovico Carbone/Siren rising from the waves, by Sperandio of Mantua, Italian, ca.
1464. Museum description: This is a bronze gilt medal made by Sperandio of Mantua (ca. 1425- after 1504) in Italy in about 1464. The obverse of this medal represents the poet Lodovico Carbone of Ferrara (1436-1482) and the reverse shows Siren rising from the waves. Sperandio (ca. 1425 - 1504), a prolific medallist if inferior imitator of Pisanello, was born in Mantua and grew up and worked mainly in Ferrara. From 1478 to ca.
1490, however, he worked at Bologna. He got his training from his father. It is not clear when he started his medallic work, but no work could be attributed to him before 1460. It seems that Sperandio was working for Borso d'Este from the early 1460s on a continuous basis. His activities were quite varied and there is evidence that he was also working as a goldsmith and painter. During a short stay in Faenza he was appointed by the Manfredi family to work in bronze, marble, terracotta and lead, as well as for works in gold, drawings and paintings.
Lodovico Gonzaga, bishop of Mantua,… The museum records it as gilt bronze, measuring Diameter 3.5 in. These details come from the museum's own record; how far this object represents a wider collectible type has not yet been independently verified.
Evidence at a glance
- Linked sources
- 1
- Photograph views
- 1
- Catalogue references
- 0
Counts describe this entry’s documentation, not authenticity, rarity or completeness. Photographs may show one specimen; check each caption and licence.
Historical context
This is a bronze gilt medal made by Sperandio of Mantua (ca. 1425- after 1504) in Italy in about 1464. The obverse of this medal represents the poet Lodovico Carbone of Ferrara (1436-1482) and the reverse shows Siren rising from the waves. Sperandio (ca. 1425 - 1504), a prolific medallist if inferior imitator of Pisanello, was born in Mantua and grew up and worked mainly in Ferrara. From 1478 to ca. 1490, however, he worked at Bologna. He got his training from his father. It is not clear when he started his medallic work, but no work could be attributed to him before 1460. It seems that Sperandio was working for Borso d'Este from the early 1460s on a continuous basis. His activities were quite varied and there is evidence that he was also working as a goldsmith and painter. During a short stay in Faenza he was appointed by the Manfredi family to work in bronze, marble, terracotta and lead, as well as for works in gold, drawings and paintings. Lodovico Gonzaga, bishop of Mantua, recommended him to his brother Gianfrancesco as a cannon founder and architect and that is how Sperandio spent his last years of working in Venice.
Physical characteristics
- Material
- gilt bronze
- Dimensions
- Diameter 3.5 in
Technical characteristics
- Maker recorded
- Sperandio
- Place recorded
- Italy
Identification
- Museum object name
- Medal
- Museum object number
- 662-1865
- Museum system number
- O153821
Catalogue references
No catalogue numbers recorded. Numbers are only published once transcribed from a verified edition of a standard catalogue — they are never inferred.
Research required
- Research required: confirm the wider type, maker and catalogue references against a specialist reference.