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Although the Uffizi drawing shows monkeys in the niches, were they even
made? This question has been raised.
No-one has questioned the
authenticity of the Uffizi drawing which clearly shows monkeys in position in two of the
niches. The drawing seems to be accepted as 16th century (18). There is
documentary evidence that the statue of Samson and a Philistine and the fountain itself
were carved by Giambologna and it is inconceivable if the four monkeys were made they
would be by anyone other than Giambologna himself. As his greatest ambition was to rival
Michelangelo he would hardly delegate this work to another sculptor. He was never
ambitious for riches but welcomed tokens of commendation from important patrons. In 1599
Giambologna was admitted to the Order of the Knights of Christ. He was also a member of
the Order of Santo Stefano founded by Cosimo de Medici in 1561.
Would Giambologna go to the trouble
of carving four niches, set them back a little from the face, carve drapery and foliate
ornament just to leave them empty? The flat ledge of the outer wall encourages people to
sit – just to admire empty niches? It seems unlikely. If the monkeys in the drawing
were by Giambologna we have a choice of materials – bronze, marble or stone.
Giambologna said "A man cannot guarantee to produce in marble anything with as
extraordinary a composition as his imagination suggests". Bronze monkeys in the
niches would provide Giambologna the perfect opportunity to demonstrate his skills as an
animal artist in a material more responsive than stone or marble.
The Uffizi drawing shows the
monkeys coloured with a brown wash, which does indicate they are probably in bronze.
Marble or stone would not look as impressive against the yellow sandstone background as
bronze monkeys. After his successful execution of the Neptune Fountain in Bologna would
Giambologna neglect to complete his following fountain, that of Samson slaying the
Philistine? Even though there seems to be no documentation in the archives about the
casting of the monkeys and no details in the records of the Portigiani foundry at San
Marco, then used by Giambologna, the various attempts in the past to fill these niches
with monkeys gives a general acceptance by scholars that the monkeys would have been made.
After completion of the Neptune
fountain in Bologna (1566) and its spectacular success Giambologna became a much sought
after sculptor. Realising his worth Prince Francesco de Medici refused to lend him to the
Queen of France, Catherine de Medici, to complete the equestrian statue of her husband,
Henry II (19). The Holy Roman Emperor Maximilian II and his son Rudolph II also tried to
lure Giambologna to work for them to no avail. He was sought because he gained a
reputation for completing commissions. Taking all into consideration it does seem logical
the four monkeys were made. There just remains the mystery of which ones they are among
the competing claimants.
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