Ceres 1585 - 1615

Girolamo Campagna made this bronze sculpture of Ceres, the Roman goddess of agriculture, sometime between the late 16th and early 17th centuries. The sculpture's warm, dark tone results from the bronze alloy and the artist's finishing techniques. Bronze casting is an intensive, skilled process. The artist would have started with a model, likely in wax or clay, and then created a mold around it. Molten bronze was poured into the mold, and after cooling, the mold was broken away to reveal the rough cast. The surface was then refined through chasing, polishing, and the application of patinas, giving the sculpture its final appearance. The choice of bronze was significant. In ancient times, bronze was used for tools, weapons, and also prized artworks. By Campagna's time, it was strongly associated with wealth and power. While seemingly simple, the Ceres embodies the complex interactions between material, skill, and social context, which challenge our conventional ideas about fine art.