Sappho and her influenceRobinson, David M. (David Moore)
History
Sappho and her influence
Robinson, David M. (David Moore)
Sappho -- Influence
The so-called head of Sappho in the Pitti in Florence is of a different
type, more dream-like, and may not be Sappho at all. More likely to
represent Sappho are the busts in Oxford (Pl. 20) and the Vatican. Other
busts about which there is considerable doubt are in Naples, in the
Riccardi Palace, in the Uffizi at Florence, and there is a double herm
in Madrid which has been called Sappho and Phaon. Of the so-called Phaon
in Madrid, Amelung has recently found in the storerooms of the Vatican
a beautiful replica, and he has also discovered there another Sappho
bust of the type on coins. In the summer of 1922 I photographed a bust,
which is in the Borghese Palace, and I think that it may represent Sappho
(Pl. 21). It resembles a colossal head from Smyrna in Constantinople,
the bust in Naples, and the double bust in Madrid in its energetic and
individualized features, such as the large nose and thick lips, and in
the curl on the forehead beneath the middle of the fillet. Rizzo would
trace the Naples bust back to about 420 B.C. and call it an ideal
representation of a mortal or perhaps even a courtesan. But Sappho might
easily have been represented in the type of a courtesan or even a muse.
The large bronze bust in New York which has been published as a portrayal
of Sappho can hardly represent the poetess, even if the bronze is genuine
and has the sanction of great authorities such as Eisen,[131] Babelon,
and André, since it resembles none of the known portraits of her. The
Romans as well as the Greeks were undoubtedly very fond of statues of
Sappho, and some day excavators will turn up for us more authenticated
portraits. The recently discovered Roman stucco relief which we
have already described (p. 42) shows what we may expect from future
discoveries. Even such articles of every-day-use as scales have weights
in the form of a Sappho head, such as that recently discovered.[132]
What we have said about the uncertainty of representations of Sappho
in ancient sculpture applies equally to the portrait of her on gems.
Cipollini has listed and illustrated many ancient and modern gems and
miniatures, but even if those called ancient are forgeries or are from
Renaissance times, the great number of them shows the unusual influence
of Sappho on the glyptic art in precious stones.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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