Perseus and the Extraordinary Life of Benvenuto Cellini
GERMANY, Modern Art. Benvenuto Cellini, Florentine goldsmith, sculptor, painter, musician, and author. 1500-1571. Cast Æ Medal (121mm, 649.65 g, 12h). By Fritz Nuss. Dated (19)72. BENVENUTO CELLINI 1500–1571, head of Benvenuto Cellini facing slightly left; over temple, angel flying left, holding pentagram (representative of his supernatural visions of angelic protectors and his delvings into the dark arts); behind neck, pan seated left, playing flute (representative of his creative inspirations and lifelong musical instrument) / Head of Medusa left, with serpent-coiled hair; in foreground, Perseus standing right, holding harpa and severed head of Medusa (after Cellini’s
Perseus with the head of Medusa). Superb EF, attractive dark red-brown surfaces, with lighter highlights. Rare and artistically appealing.
A man of many artistic talents, Benvenuto Cellini was known not only for his works in smithery (garnering him the approval of Pope Clement VII), sculpting (creating Perseus with the Head of Medusa), painting and portraiture (serving as a designer and engraver at the Papal mint), and music (becoming an accomplished flute player), but also in writing, in which he produced an extraordinary autobiography of his amazing career throughout Italy and France. This classic, considered one of the most important autobiographies of the Renaissance, gives a detailed account of Cellini’s experiences, covering his loves and hatreds and relaying his energetic and direct style, though, at times, too energetic, as some of his extravagances (represented by the supernatural visions on the medal above) are assuredly impossible to be credible.
