Alexander the Great

ca. 1779–80

On view at The Met Fifth Avenue in Gallery 512

Alongside developing wares for the middle-class market, Wedgwood and Bentley catered to the elite fascination with antiquity by making busts for display in private libraries. With thick curls and a handsome face, this basalt copy of an ancient bust from the Capitoline Museum in Rome is thought to depict Alexander the Great as Helios the sun god. Ideal male beauties, including classical sculptures of heroes and gods, were used to show off an owner’s refined taste. Covertly, they could serve as symbols of same-sex desire at a time when homosexuality was illegal in Britain.

Artwork Details

Overview

Signatures, Inscriptions, and Markings

Provenance

Title: Alexander the Great
Maker: Wedgwood and Bentley (British, Etruria, Staffordshire, 1769–1780)
Date: ca. 1779–80
Culture: British, Etruria, Staffordshire
Medium: Black basalt ware
Dimensions: confirmed: 22 7/16 × 12 1/2 × 11 1/4 in., 35.1 lb. (57 × 31.8 × 28.6 cm, 15.9 kg)
Classification: Ceramics-Pottery
Credit Line: Gift of the Starr and Wolfe Families, 2018
Object Number: 2018.889.8
Curatorial Department: European Sculpture and Decorative Arts

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Vase with cover, Wedgwood and Bentley British, Glazed earthenware, British, Etruria, Staffordshire — Vase with cover
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