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Saint John the Baptist

Giovanni Francesco Rustici (Italian, Florentine, 1474–1554)
Attributed to: Giovanni Francesco Rustici (Italian, Florentine, 1474–1554)
Italian (Florence)
Renaissance
About 1505–15
Object Place: Florence, Italy

Medium/Technique Glazed terracotta
Dimensions 100.3 x 33 x 26.7 cm (39 1/2 x 13 x 10 1/2 in.)
Credit Line Gift of Mrs. Solomon R. Guggenheim
Accession Number50.2624
CollectionsEurope
ClassificationsSculpture
With sharply turned head and intensely focused gaze, this figure of Saint John seems almost to speak. The statue is attributed to Giovanni Francesco Rustici, the Florentine sculptor, who worked most closely with Leonardo da Vinci. The sculpture's creamy white glaze, very different from the pure white achieved by the della Robbia workshop, suggests that even in this monochrome sculpture Rustici was seeking a particular coloristic effect through contrast of light and shadow.

DescriptionWhite glazed terracotta figure of St. John the Baptist, barefoot and dressed in animal skins.
Provenance1950, Irene Rothschild (Mrs. Solomon R.) Guggenheim (b. 1868 - d. 1954), New York; 1950, gift of Mrs. Solomon R. Guggenheim to the MFA. (Accession Date: June 8, 1950)
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