Gilt Bronze of Mars the God of War

Period: 1600-1700

Origin: Europe, Belgium, France

Medium: Bronze, Bronze Gilt, Porphyry

Dimension: 16.5 cm (6¹/₂ inches)

Literature: The son of a master carpenter, the Flemish sculptor Sebastian Slodtz joined the Paris workshop of François Girardon and under his direction worked on the sculptural decoration of Versailles and its gardens. Working for the court of Louis XIV he became known for producing small bronze models which were often reductions of existing statues in the Royal gardens in Paris. The bronze reduction produced of his marble statue of Hannibal is similar in detail. He married the daughter of Domenico Cucci, a gold and silversmith who also worked for the King and which brought him into valuable contact with other craftsmen. The fine surface and gilding of the bronze suggests the involvement of his goldsmith father-in-law. Mars was a popular subject and at the Meissen porcelain manufactory Kandler produced a figure based on this bronze after 1730. The Elector of Saxony most probably had an example in his collection at Dresden.