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Birth of an Art Form - Pisanello's Medal of John VIII Palaeologus

John VIII Palaeologus

Work of Antonio di Puccio Pisano, called Pisanello, c. 1438-1439.


Lead, 101.6 mm Ø, 504.4 g

Obverse: Bust of John VIII facing right, with hair in long curls and a beard and moustache, wearing vest and cloak, with a tall hat. Around, + ΙωΑNNΗC · ΒΑCΙΛεVC · ΚΑΙ · ΑVΤΟ / ΚΡΑΤωΡ · PωΜΑΙωΝ · Ο · ΠΑΑΑΙΟΛΟΓΟC (John, King and Emperor of the Romans, the Palaeologus).

Reverse: John VIII on horseback facing right, with bow and quiver, before wayside cross, hands folded in prayer. To the left, a page on horseback viewed from behind. The figures are positioned within a rocky landscape. Above, OPVS · PISANI · PICTO / RIS · , and below, εΡΓΟΝ · ΤΟV · ΠΙCΑΝΟV · ΖωΓΡΑΦΟV (The Work of Pisano the Painter).

This medal is generally considered to be the first portrait medal of the Italian Renaissance. Though there are a few early prototypes of a medallic form, it was this and the further works of Pisanello which begot followers for the new art form of the portrait medal. The medal is believed to have been created in 1438 or 1439, when John VIII Palaeologus was in Ferrara to attend a council convened by Pope Eugenius IV.

John VIII was the penultimate Byzantine emperor who had been trying in vain to gather assistance in Europe for his fight against the Turks, and a constant issue was a union of the Roman Catholic and Greek Orthodox churches. Eugenius IV convened a council to address problems of the Church, and the issue of a union between the Roman and Greek churches was to also be discussed. John VIII was invited to attend and, after many delays, arrived with his delegation in Venice in February of 1438.

After postponing the start to allow for the arrival of various other European representatives, the council opened in Ferrara on October 8, 1438. Soon after, an outbreak of the plague in Ferrara caused the council to move to Florence in February of 1439. In the end, John VIII did not receive the assistance that he so desperately needed, and upon his return to Constantinople he faced riots by his own subjects who found the idea of reconciliation of the two churches unacceptable.

At the time of the council, Pisanello, already a famous painter, was working in Ferrara for Leonello d'Este. A number of surviving drawings from his hand show his interest in the exotic appearance of the Byzantine delegation. It is during this time, when both John VIII and Pisanello were in Ferrara, that the medal is believed to have been conceived and created. The reverse design, with the emperor on horseback with a bow and quiver, shows him partaking in two of his favorite activities of riding and hunting, of which he spent considerable time partaking in while in Ferrara. The image of him praying before a wayside cross evokes the purpose of his visit to Ferrara.

The medal, while significant for its place in art history as the first proper portrait medal, also contains several interesting points in the designs. On the obverse, the exotic dress and appearance of the emperor is clearly shown, with his impressive hat occupying nearly half of the vertical space for the portrait. On the reverse, the page on horseback is shown with noticeable foreshortening and, intriguingly, the horse's left ear is penetrating through the border. The artist's signature, in both Latin and Greek, proudly proclaims him as a painter.

Published/Exhibited: Exhibited in The Currency of Fame (listed in Scher 1994, no. 4a).

Provenance: Ex Michael Hall collection.

References:
Börner 1997, no. 5
Christiansen and Weppelmann 2011, no. 64
Hill 1930, no. 19
Johnson and Martini 1986, nos. 413-414
Pollard 2007a, no. 1
Scher 1994, no. 4
Vannel and Toderi 2003, nos. 3-7

.

As an aside, there is currently a wonderful exhibition of medals from the collection of Dr. Stephen K. Scher at the Frick Collection. In association with this exhibition, Dr. Scher gave a very nice lecture last week, which discusses some of his collecting and a nice background on medals. For anyone interested in watching, it can be viewed on the Frick's website:
frick.org/interact/heads_and_tales_odyssey_medals_collector

On a personal note, I had considered this medal to be my white whale, and had wondered if I would ever have the chance to acquire a decent example of any Pisanello medal. With most good examples impounded in museums and mainly lower quality later casts on the market, I was very gratified to have the opportunity to acquire this piece.

Comments

  • BillDugan1959BillDugan1959 Posts: 3,821 ✭✭✭✭✭

    Many congratulations on this impressive acquisition. And thank you for pointing out that the Emperor is praying at a wayside cross, a fine detail that I had never understood before now.

  • TwoKopeikiTwoKopeiki Posts: 9,528 ✭✭✭✭✭

    Very cool, congrats! Thank you for sharing the history behind it!

  • STLNATSSTLNATS Posts: 1,597 ✭✭✭

    Great historical piece. Congrats Joe.

    Always interested in St Louis MO & IL metro area and Evansville IN national bank notes and Vatican/papal states coins and medals!
  • NapNap Posts: 1,702 ✭✭✭✭✭

    Is this an original 15th century?

    I have never seen an original though there are many later casts.

    This is a highly significant medal that is very influential in the development of post-Medieval coin art.

    The portrait of John did not prove, however, particularly influential in the development of men's headwear.

  • IosephusIosephus Posts: 872 ✭✭✭

    Thanks all!

    @Nap said:
    Is this an original 15th century?

    I have never seen an original though there are many later casts.

    This is a highly significant medal that is very influential in the development of post-Medieval coin art.

    The portrait of John did not prove, however, particularly influential in the development of men's headwear.

    The word "original" is rather troubling to use, with some experts noting that there are no originals in cast medals except for the model from which the initial mold is made. That said, based on the detail of the design, the quality of the cast, and the dimensions of the piece, I would classify this as a contemporary 15th century piece.

    It is a shame about the headwear ...

  • ZoharZohar Posts: 6,629 ✭✭✭✭✭
    edited May 19, 2017 6:06PM

    As an aside, there is currently a wonderful exhibition of medals from the collection of Dr. Stephen K. Scher at the Frick Collection. In association with this exhibition, Dr. Scher gave a very nice lecture last week, which discusses some of his collecting and a nice background on medals. For anyone interested in watching, it can be viewed on the Frick's website:
    frick.org/interact/heads_and_tales_odyssey_medals_collector

    Joe - congrats on this important pickup.

    Dr. Scher is to me, an immaculate collector and art connoisseur. Quite a collection the Frick was endowed - I may pickup a catalog as well - frick.org/shop/exhibition_catalogues/scher/medals

    https://youtube.com/watch?v=0qLzUilYDDI

  • STLNATSSTLNATS Posts: 1,597 ✭✭✭

    Thanks for mentioning the exhibit Joe. I was able to order one of the catalogs for my library. Also I found that the earlier "The Currency of Fame" catalog is still available from Amazon and figured it was worth adding as well, esp since I had some unused Amazon points... :)

    Always interested in St Louis MO & IL metro area and Evansville IN national bank notes and Vatican/papal states coins and medals!
  • IosephusIosephus Posts: 872 ✭✭✭

    @STLNATS said:
    Thanks for mentioning the exhibit Joe. I was able to order one of the catalogs for my library. Also I found that the earlier "The Currency of Fame" catalog is still available from Amazon and figured it was worth adding as well, esp since I had some unused Amazon points... :)

    I glanced through the of the exhibit catalogs while I was there, and it looked to be mostly an introductory essay on medals, with images of a few selected pieces. While I've also ordered a copy for my library, I am much more interested in the complete catalog of the Scher collection that is schedules to be published next year.

    The catalog for The Currency of Fame is magnificent, probably the best publication for reading (as opposed to a corpus-like listing of all known pieces) for medals of the period. One word of warning though, if you bought the softcover version, be gentle, as the cover detaches quite easily from the rest of the book. I ended up replacing mine with the much sturdier hardcover version.

  • WillieBoyd2WillieBoyd2 Posts: 5,034 ✭✭✭✭✭

    The Pope has one:

    image
    Various medals including a John Palaeologus medal

    From the CBS Television network "60 Minutes" program on April 10, 2011 about the Vatican Library in Rome.

    :)

    https://www.brianrxm.com
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  • STLNATSSTLNATS Posts: 1,597 ✭✭✭
    edited May 21, 2017 10:03PM

    @Iosephus said:
    One word of warning though, if you bought the softcover version, be gentle, as the cover detaches quite easily from the rest of the book. I ended up replacing mine with the much sturdier hardcover version.

    Even some of my hard cover references are failing apart so when I noticed the large size of the book, I popped for the hardcover which was only modestly more expensive. Most of my library is specialized so I look forward to working thru these 2 additions.

    Always interested in St Louis MO & IL metro area and Evansville IN national bank notes and Vatican/papal states coins and medals!
  • ZoharZohar Posts: 6,629 ✭✭✭✭✭

    I had the distinct pleasure of spending the afternoon with Joe at the Metropolitan Museum of Art having a look at the Lehman Collection followed by a visit to the Frick seeing the fabulous Scher collection and hearing a talk. Relatively light traffic which enabled us to take our time in both venues. For me it was quite the treat especially when driven by a humble expert which Joe is.

    In witnessing the scope and quality of Scher's collection, his own Palaeologus medal, as well as speaking to the man himself on site, I can only note that Joe's pickup is one BIG whale. While there, Dr. Scher also complemented Joe on his collection.

    Very nice to see such knowledge concentrated in one place.

  • PatARPatAR Posts: 347 ✭✭✭

    A big whale indeed! Congratulations Joe!

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