Sculture italiane in marmo nel Viceregno del Perù / Italian Marble Sculptures in the Viceroyalty of Peru

Abstract

Nell’ambito del fenomeno della circolazione dell’arte tra gli Stati italiani e il Viceregno del Perù in Età Moderna, il presente contributo intende focalizzare l’attenzione sull’invio di opere scultoree italiane in marmo in America meridionale. A causa delle grandi difficoltà di trasporto e dei costi molto elevati, la presenza di opere in questo materiale è del tutto eccezionale; quindi, gli esemplari presenti nel continente meritano di essere studiati a prescindere da qualsiasi giudizio qualitativo o di natura estetica. Le opere in marmo in questione sono tutte di tema sacro, essendo per lo più sculture inserite come ornamento di arredi liturgici quali acquasantiere, pulpiti o lavabi, ma ci sono anche casi eccezionali di simulacri di grandi dimensioni come il poco noto Cristo della colonna del convento di San Domenico di Lima.

In the context of the vast phenomenon of the circulation of art between the Italian States and the Viceroyalty of Peru, this article aims to provide an initial contribution to focus attention on the shipping of Italian marble works to South America. Due to the great difficulties associated with transportation and very high costs, the presence of works in this material is quite exceptional on the continent where, in any case, some significant works commissioned by the local civil and religious elite arrived. In fact, in both Europe and America, marble represented a paradigm of value so that it was used by patrons to flaunt their power. The works examined are all related to the sacred sphere, such as holy water fonts, pulpits, washbasins and some statues. They highlight the great importance held by the religious orders, often in competition with each other, in their arrival in the Viceroyalty. The article also studies the way in which works were contracted in Genoese workshops, the difficult dynamics of their shipping, the motivations that drove patrons to purchase them, the reasons that decreed their success or failure, as well as the local alternatives to the use of marble, such as alabaster and painted faux-marble decoration.