Pope Alexander VII (obverse), and the Piazzo del Popolo (reverse) / Gioacchino Travani
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About this Item
Record Details
- Accession Number
- 1984/1.282
- Title
- Pope Alexander VII (obverse), and the Piazzo del Popolo (reverse)
- Artist
- Gioacchino Travani
- Artist Nationality
- Italian
- Artist Life Dates
- Active 1634-1674
- Medium and Support
- bronze
- Object Creation Date
- 1662
- Object Creation Place
- Europe (continent)
- Italy (nation)
- Lazio (region)
- Roma (province)
- Rome (inhabited place)
- Creation Place 1
- Europe (continent)
- Creation Place 2
- Italy (nation)
- Creation Place 3
- Lazio (region)
- Creation Place 4
- Roma (province)
- Creation Place 5
- Rome (inhabited place)
- Credit Line
- Museum Purchase
- Style/Group/Movement
- Baroque
- Inscription
- Obverse: Alex. VII Pont Max A. VIII; 1662 below truncation Reverse: Sapientia in Plateis Dat Vocem Suam; MDCLXII in esargue
- Period
- Europe, Baroque (1590-1750)
- Dimensions
- 2 cm x 6.3 cm x 6.3 cm (13/16 in. x 2 1/2 in. x 2 1/2 in.)
- Century
- 17th-18th century
- Primary Object Classification
- Metalwork
- Primary Object Type
- coin
- Physical Description
- The front (obverse) of this medal represents a portrait of a man in profile wearing a papal tiara and a cope. The reverse depicts a city square dominated by an obelisk with a pair of identical domed churches in the background. Inscriptions run around the edge of the medal on both sides.
- Subject Matter
- A portrait of Alexander VII wearing the papal tiara graces the front of this medal. On the reverse appears the renovated Piazza del Popolo in Rome, a civic works project initiated by Alexander VII. The piazza owed its importance to the three streets that led from the square into the heart of the city. The medal anticipates the piazza’s appearance after the renovation by placing two domed churches in the middle ground with the three streets receding dramatically into the distance. The artist reinforced the symmetry of the paired churches by arranging the scene around a central obelisk, thereby heightening the sense of rational order and breathtaking grandeur imposed by the pope’s will upon the urban fabric.
- Primary Keywords
- bronze (metal)
- casting (process)
- head
- medallions (medals)
- obelisks
- popes
- profile views
- squares (open spaces)
- Secondary Keywords
- image form
- biological components
- buildings and the land
- christian clergy
- clergy
- components
- components and systems
- components by specific context
- copper alloy
- copper and copper alloy
- descriptors
- forming
- inorganic material
- materials
- materials by composition
- medals
- metal
- metal and metal products
- metal by composition or origin
- monumental pillars
- monuments
- monuments by form
- nonferrous metal
- objects we use
- open spaces
- open spaces and site elements
- open spaces by form
- people
- people (agents)
- people and culture
- people by occupation
- people in religion
- people in religion and related occupations
- people in the humanities
- prelates
- processes and techniques
- processes and techniques by specific type
- single built works
- single built works by function
- single built works by specific type
- the human body
- upper body
- views
- views by vantage point or orientation
- visual works
- visual works by form
- Rights
- If you are interested in using an image for a publication, please visit https://umma.umich.edu/about/services/request-image/ for more information and to fill out the online Image Rights and Reproductions Request Form.
Technical Details
- Collection
- University of Michigan Museum of Art
- Image Size
- 633 x 613
- File Size
- 33 KB
- Record
- 1984/1.282
- Link to this Item
-
https://quod.lib.umich.edu/m/musart/x-1984-sl-1.282/1984_1.282obv.jpg
Rights and Permissions
Related Links
Portfolios
- In public portfolios
IIIF
- Manifest
-
https://quod.lib.umich.edu/cgi/i/image/api/manifest/musart:1984-SL-1.282:1984_1.282OBV.JPG
Cite this Item
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- Full citation
-
"Pope Alexander VII (obverse), and the Piazzo del Popolo (reverse); Gioacchino Travani." In the digital collection University of Michigan Museum of Art. https://quod.lib.umich.edu/m/musart/x-1984-sl-1.282/1984_1.282obv.jpg. University of Michigan Library Digital Collections. Accessed May 02, 2024.