About this artwork
This scene shows Vulcan and his assistants the Cyclopes forging weapons for the gods, with Minerva standing at the right. The diamond surmounting Minerva’s shield is an emblem of the Medici family, and this picture may have been painted around 1565 for Francesco de’ Medici (Grand Duke from 1574), who took a keen interest in metallurgy and alchemy.
Updated before 2020
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artist:Jacopo Zucchi (about 1541 - 1596) Italian
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title:Minerva at the Forge of Vulcan
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date created:About 1565
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materials:Oil on tin
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measurements:38.70 x 29.20 cm
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object type:
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credit line:Purchased 1997
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accession number:NG 2670
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gallery:
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Jacopo Zucchi
Jacopo Zucchi
Zucchi was a painter and draughtsman who trained in the Florentine workshop of Giorgio Vasari. He was to become one of the more extreme exponents of the prevailing maniera or mannerist style, with elaborate, densely packed compositions, jarring disparities in scale, highly artificial figure poses,...