Monogrammista MF (XVI) - Apollo e Marsia

Description

"Apollo and Marsyas", etching, 23 x 31.5 cm, at the platemark, ca. 1586, monogram MF, laid paper, watermark with letters MA. The print is attached at the upper corners to a support sheet that bears notes in 19th-century handwriting. To avoid compromising the object's integrity, the seller preferred not to detach the print, offering it together with the accompanying support card.

This etching is a counterproof reproduction derived from the burin made in 1581 by Melchior Meier. The work depicts the triumph of Apollo, who with his left hand holds the skin of Marsyas, the satyr flayed alive as punishment for daring to challenge the god in a musical contest. The image is iconographically complex as it combines two different mythological challenges: the struggle between Apollo and Marsyas and that between Apollo and Pan. The latter is recalled by the presence of King Midas, placed behind the god and characterized by donkey ears, an attribute awarded for having unjustly decreed the victory of the satyr Pan. Although the plate bears the date '1536', it is commonly believed that this indication is an error or a contemporaneous falsification, in keeping with the late sixteenth-century style of the composition.

From a structural standpoint, the figure of Apollo draws inspiration from the famous Apollo Belvedere statue, although the engraver has accentuated its musculature, moving away from classical elegance to embrace a more vigorous Nordic sensibility. The extreme anatomical accuracy of the bodies reflects the influence exerted by the publication of Andrea Vesalius's work (1543), which urged artists of the time to fuse scientific knowledge of human anatomy with the portrayal of mythological or martyrdom subjects. The graphic mark is dense and descriptive, capable of distinguishing the tension of the muscular tissues from the roughness of the tree bark, creating a natural environment that participates in the drama of the event.

The work belongs to a production inspired by Melchior Meier, a German artist who worked at the Florentine court and who dedicated the original subject to Francesco I de' Medici as a tribute to the duke, identified with the Apollo of the Florentine artistic scene.

Author

The so-called Monogrammist MF is an anonymous engraver, plausibly of German origin, active in the second half of the 16th century between Germany and Italy, known mainly for his skill as a copyist and interpreter of other people's compositions.

His production fits into that lively market of printed translation that allowed the circulation of graphic inventions between Northern Europe and Italy. Although his identity remains concealed behind the initials "MF" (sometimes extended to "AMF"), the accuracy of his anatomical details reveals a deep knowledge of the scientific texts of the era, such as Vesalius, which significantly influenced the representation of the human body in art of the time.

Condition Report

Overall good condition. The print is fresh, with the hatchings perfectly sharp and legible. The sheet is free of stains or the like, the paper patina is uniform and very slight considering the object's age (see photo).

Tracked and insured shipment with adequate packaging.