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Desiderio da Settignano (artist) Italian, c. 1429 - 1464 The Christ Child (?), c. 1460 marble overall: 30.5 x 26.5 x 16.3 cm (12 x 10 7/16 x 6 7/16 in.) Samuel H. Kress Collection 1943.4.94 |
Object 2 of 8
In contrast to the wide-eyed innocence of A Little Boy, also by Desiderio, this bust shows an alert, impish child eager to interact with his world. His thick hair flows in flamelike waving tufts. The irises and pupils of his eyes are carved as if to sparkle. With his chin tucked under and his lips pressed together, this holy child seems barely able to control his smile.
From sometime before 1756 until 1940, this bust was installed above a doorway next to the high altar in the Oratory of San Francesco of the Vanchettoni in Florence. Antonio Rossellino's Young Saint John the Baptist of about 1470, was displayed above an opposite door. The backs of both busts were flattened so that they could be attached to the wall. Each had a small hole drilled in the crown of its head to hold a metal halo. This evidence suggests that Desiderio's boy was intended to be an image of the Christ child. It is equally possible that the bust originated as a portrait of a Florentine child and was given sacred identity at a later date.
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