DOI Heft:
Nr. 2
DOI Artikel:Kaczmarzyk, Dariusz: "Niobe" by Bernini and the ancient Niobe from Nieborów
DOI Seite / Zitierlink: https://doi.org/10.11588/diglit.18861#0058
2. G. L. Beraini, Tiie Head of t.ie Warsaw Niobe, front view and Ieft profile (phot. S. Sobkowicz)
mouth open in a scream, the turn of eyes, two tears f!o%ving down the Ieft cheek and the arran-
gement of hair.
In spite of so striking a similarity between these two pieces of sculpture, there emerge distinct
differer.ces in execution, especially in treating of the face and hair .In the statuę of Prozerpina
the surface of face is smoothed out and evened in contrast to the hair which is carved in deep
and wide folds arranged parallel to each other and having porous surface and cut sharp edges.
Those contrasts of smooth and rough surfaces are typical to Bcrnini's oeuvre. Prozerpina's
open mouth forms an oval softly drawn at the corners, and the dramatic expression of eyes was
achieved by a deep modelliiig of pupils. In the case of the Warsaw „Niobe", the hair, although
composed in a similar way, show aa individual treatment of form — they are smaller, more
detailed, broken up into smaller element of a smoothed surface and evened edges. The oval
of opened mouth has a hard outline, and the expression of eyes has been decreased by lightly
marked pupils. This face gives an impression to be of a slightly elder woman than Prozerpina.
Ways of modelling of the sculpture surfaces enumerated here suggest that the Warsaw „Niobe"
came into existence later than the original statuę of Prozerpina, following the example of the
latter. This fact does not diminish, however, the high artistic value of the sculpture, sińce —
though being a doubtless repetition of a fragment of Prozerpina — it does not betray any features
of a copy made in a mechanic way. Anyway, the considerable size of the Pluto and Prozerpina
50
mouth open in a scream, the turn of eyes, two tears f!o%ving down the Ieft cheek and the arran-
gement of hair.
In spite of so striking a similarity between these two pieces of sculpture, there emerge distinct
differer.ces in execution, especially in treating of the face and hair .In the statuę of Prozerpina
the surface of face is smoothed out and evened in contrast to the hair which is carved in deep
and wide folds arranged parallel to each other and having porous surface and cut sharp edges.
Those contrasts of smooth and rough surfaces are typical to Bcrnini's oeuvre. Prozerpina's
open mouth forms an oval softly drawn at the corners, and the dramatic expression of eyes was
achieved by a deep modelliiig of pupils. In the case of the Warsaw „Niobe", the hair, although
composed in a similar way, show aa individual treatment of form — they are smaller, more
detailed, broken up into smaller element of a smoothed surface and evened edges. The oval
of opened mouth has a hard outline, and the expression of eyes has been decreased by lightly
marked pupils. This face gives an impression to be of a slightly elder woman than Prozerpina.
Ways of modelling of the sculpture surfaces enumerated here suggest that the Warsaw „Niobe"
came into existence later than the original statuę of Prozerpina, following the example of the
latter. This fact does not diminish, however, the high artistic value of the sculpture, sińce —
though being a doubtless repetition of a fragment of Prozerpina — it does not betray any features
of a copy made in a mechanic way. Anyway, the considerable size of the Pluto and Prozerpina
50