Gian Galeazzo Manzi
Unknown Artist
on or after 1669
Medium
Gilt bronze with dark patinated ground
Dimensions
Confirmed: 3/16 × 2 9/16 in. (0.5 × 6.5 cm)
Classification
Medals and Plaquettes
Culture
Italian
Department
European Sculpture and Decorative Arts
Museum
Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York, NY
Credit
Bequest of Mrs. Charles Wrightsman, 2019
Accession Number
2019.283.138
Art Historical Context
This exquisite gilt bronze plaquette, titledGian Galeazzo Manzi captures the likeness of its namesake in a delicate low-relief portrait, crafted by an unknown Italian artist on or after 9. Measuring just 3/16 × 2 9/16 inches (0.5 × 6.5 cm), it exemplifies the intimate scale of 17th-century medals andquettes—small, portable sculptures prized for personal devotion, commemoration, or scholarly exchange. Housed in the Metropolitan Museum of Art's Department of European Sculpture and Decorative Arts, it entered the collection through the generous bequest of Mrs. Charles Wrightsman in 2019. The art...