Firenze Fontana del Nettuno

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Firenze
Fontana del Nettuno
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Internet image
The Fountain of Neptune is a fountain in Florence
situated on the Piazza della Signoria (Signoria
square), in front of the Palazzo Vecchio. This
work by Bartolomeo Ammannati (15631565) and some
assistants, such as Giambologna, was commissioned
on the occasion of the wedding of Francesco I de'
Medici with grand duchess Johanna of Austria in
1565.
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The assignment had first been given to Baccio
Bandinelli, who designed the model but he died
before he could start working on the block of
Apuan marble.
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The Neptune figure, whose face resembles that of
Cosimo I de' Medici, was meant to be an allusion
to the dominion of the Florentines over the sea.
The figure stands on a high pedestal in the
middle of an octagonal fountain. The pedestal in
the middle is decorated with the mythical chained
figures of Scylla and Charybdis.
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The statue of Neptune is a copy made in the
nineteenth century, while the original is in the
National Museum
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However, when the work was finished, it was not
appreciated in particular by the Florentines, who
called it Il Biancone (the white giant). When the
work on the ungainly sea god was finished,
Michelangelo scoffed at Ammannati that he had
ruined a beautiful piece of marble "Ammannati,
Ammanato, che bell' marmo hai rovinato!
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Work continued on this fountain during the next
ten years. Ammannati, with the assistance of the
best Florentine sculptors and casters, added
around the perimeter of the basin, in a mannerist
style, suave, reclining, bronze river gods,
laughing satyrs and marble sea-horses
Cosimo I de' Medici was Duke of Florence from
1537 to 1574. Equestrian statue by Giambologna
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The monumental marble and the dynamic bronzes
give nevertheless a coherent impression. The
fountain served as an example for future
fountain-makers.
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The fountain has suffered a great deal of damage
during the centuries. It was used as a washbasin
for laundry at the end of the 16th century. It
was vandalized on January 25 1580. A satyr was
stolen during the carnival in 1830. It was
damaged again by the Bourbon bombardments of
1848.
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One of Francesco de' Medici s daughters was the
famous Marie de Medici, second wife of King Henry
IV of France.
Consequently, it has been the object of several
restorations and substitutions. On August 4,
2005, the statue was the target of three vandals
who climbed it, damaging one of the hands and the
trident of Neptune. The act was recorded by
security cameras. The statue was restored by
2007. Since then, security on the fountain has
been taken very seriously
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In late 2007, the statue was the target of
attempted vandalism by four teens. The security
cameras and nearby police ensured that no damage
came to the fountain again and the four were
arrested.
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Text Internet Pictures Daniela Iacob All 
copyrights  belong to their  respective owners
Presentation Sanda Foisoreanu
2011
Sound Itzhak Perlman Govanni Battista
Viotti - Violin concerto no.22 in A minor