Artibus et Historiae no. 51 (XXVI)
2005, ISSN 0391-9064Up
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ADRIENNE DeANGELIS - The Apollo Wellhead of Danese Cattaneo. A Source for Ammannati's Juno Fountain in Florence
This study uses Vasari and some other sources to propose the influence of Danese Cattaneo's entire although mostly unexecuted project for what is now known as the Apollo wellhead in Venice on Ammannati's Juno Fountain in Florence. Both programs refer to the process of the creation of a vital substance: Danese Cattaneo's wellhead sculptures outline the process of the generation of gold, while Ammannati's refers to the evidently more complex process of the creation of water. In Danese's wellhead program the Venetian state has constrained the forces of nature to labor for them; while there may be some discussion as to whether gold or water is more vital for the state, the allegory of Ammannati is a charming fantasy based upon traditional personifications while the alchemical processes illustrated in Danese's scheme still retained a link to the history of science, and referred to beliefs still held by more than a few.
