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Adonis

ca. 1723–25
On view at The Met Fifth Avenue in Gallery 506
This marble was once displayed alongside a companion sculpture of a reclining Venus (now lost) in the Sagredo family’s Venetian palace. Eighteenth-century inventories identify the subject as the mythological huntsman Adonis, beloved of the goddess Venus. Although he is often depicted with fatal wounds after being killed by a boar, this reclining figure appears to be in a peaceful slumber, instead seemingly recalling the related myth of the sleeping shepherd Endymion, whose youthful beauty seduced Diana. The body’s languid pose and highly polished flesh form a sensuous display of undulating marble whose fluid curves and tactile surfaces would have complemented the palace’s interior.

Artwork Details

Object Information
  • Title: Adonis
  • Artist: Antonio Corradini (Italian, Venice 1688–1752)
  • Date: ca. 1723–25
  • Culture: Italian, Venice
  • Medium: Carrara marble
  • Dimensions: Overall, (wt. confirmed): 21 × 56 × 21 in., 527 lb. (53.3 × 142.2 × 53.3 cm, 239 kg)
    Pedestal (modern steel/marble pedestal, wt confirmed): 1478 lb. (670.4 kg)
  • Classification: Sculpture
  • Credit Line: European Sculpture and Decorative Arts and Director's Funds, 2013
  • Object Number: 2013.432
  • Curatorial Department: European Sculpture and Decorative Arts

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