Tuesday, October 21, 2008

Genius

Antonio Rossellino. Tomb of the Cardinal of Portugal. 1460-66. White and colored marbles with traces of polychromy and gold, width of chapel wall 15' 9". Chapel of the Cardinal of Portugal, San Miniato, Florence.

(Plural genii) In Roman and Renaissance art, usually the guardian spirit of a person, place, or thing, though it may be purely decorative. Genii are represented in human form, frequently seminude and winged; note the genii on the base of the tomb of the Cardinal of Portugal above. (Frederick Hartt)