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Collection of the Lowe Art Museum, University of Miami
Vulcan Being Crowned by Bona Dea
Collection of the Lowe Art Museum, University of Miami
Collection of the Lowe Art Museum, University of Miami
© Lowe Art Museum, University of Miami. All rights reserved.

Vulcan Being Crowned by Bona Dea

Artist/Maker (France, b. 1853)
Datenot dated
Mediumbronze
DimensionsOverall: 21 1/8 x 14 x 14 7/8 in. (53.7 x 35.6 x 37.8 cm)
ClassificationsVisual Works
Credit LineBequest of Rose and Albert Friedman
Terms
    Object number2006.2.3
    DescriptionThis sculpture is thought to represent Vulcan, the Roman god of fire, smithy to the gods of Mt. Olympus, and maker of all crafts, being crowned with an honorific laurel wreath by Bona Dea (in Latin, "the Good Goddess"). Most closely associated with metal-working, Vulcan’s forge was said to be located beneath Mt. Etna, the Sicilian volcano (vulcano in Italian), where he created beautiful things, such as thrones for the gods of Mt. Olympus, as well as useful things, like locks that never broke, and weapons and armor for gods and heroes. Married to Venus, goddess of beauty, Vulcan was also closely associated with, and was sometimes said to have been the husband of Bona Dea, whom the artist has depicted holding a cornucopia, one of her attributes. Pepin’s portrayal of Vulcan as a middle-aged man with unkempt hair and beard is a typical representation of the god. However, the artist has idealized the physique, thereby ennobling all craftsmen and their work. As befits the smithy to the gods, Vulcan is seated on an anvil, surrounded by his other identifying attributes, among them a blacksmith’s hammer and tongs. The god Hephaestus was Vulcan’s Greek counterpart.
    On View
    Not on view
    Collections
    Collection of the Lowe Art Museum, University of Miami
    Artist Unknown
    ca. 200-250
    Collection of the Lowe Art Museum, University of Miami
    Leagros Group
    ca. 575-500 BCE
    Collection of the Lowe Art Museum, University of Miami
    Hausa people
    19th to 20th century
    Collection of the Lowe Art Museum, University of Miami
    Hausa people
    19th to 20th century
    Collection of the Lowe Art Museum, University of Miami
    Artist Unknown
    late 19th to early 20th century (printed 1992)
    Collection of the Lowe Art Museum, University of Miami
    Aztec
    ca. 1350-1521
    Collection of the Lowe Art Museum, University of Miami
    Maya (archaeological culture)
    ca. 600-900
    Collection of the Lowe Art Museum, University of Miami
    Olmec
    ca. 600-300 BCE
    Collection of the Lowe Art Museum, University of Miami
    Cornelis Cornelisz. Van Haarlem
    not dated
    Collection of the Lowe Art Museum, University of Miami
    Miami Painter
    ca. 600-575 BCE