Plaster cast of Ghiberti doors, Florence
Object No. 86/1670
This is a plaster cast of the one of the famous bronze doors from the Baptistery of Florence Cathedral, Italy. It is thought it was commissioned between 1870 and 1890. The originals were created by Lorenzo Ghilberti and assistants between 1425 and 1452. This door illustrate 10 stories from the Old Testament. Each of the doors was dipped in a thin layer of liquid gold which floated on mercury. Michelangelo is said to have called the doors 'the gates of paradise'. The copies of the doors were made because in the 1880s museums tried to educate the public about 'taste' and 'civilisation' by showing copies of masterpieces.
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Summary
Object Statement
Plaster cast of the east door 'Gates of Paradise' by Lorenzo Ghiberti, from Florence Baptistry (1425-52), England, 1880-1890
Physical Description
Plaster cast of the East Door,"The Gates of Paradise" by Ghiberti, from Florence Cathedral, [South Kensington Museum], 1870-1890 This door illustrates ten stories from the Old Testament. It is read left to right, top to bottom: 1. The creation of Adam and Eve, original sin and expulsion from paradise. 2. Adam tilling the soil, the sacrifice of Cain and Abel, Cain killing Abel, God punishing Cain. 3. Noah's Ark, Noah planting vines, the drunkenness of Noah. 4. The three angels appear to Abraham, the sacrifice of Isaac. 5. Stories of Jacob and Esau. 6. Stories of Joseph. 7. Stories from the life of Moses. 8. Stories from the life of Saul and David. 9. Stories from the life of Joshua. 10. Meeting of Solomon and the Queen of Sheba.
HISTORY
Notes
'…A copy of the doors, in plaster with bronze coloured overlay, was commissioned by Sir James Reading Fairfax, senior proprietor of The Sydney Morning Herald in the 1870s from London's South Kensington Museum, now The Victoria and Albert. The only other copy of the doors is a metal replica at the Victoria and Albert. Sir James, a noted patron of the arts, donated the plaster door panels to the NSW Art Gallery in 1890 to allow Australians the experience of seeing this great work of art. In the 1970s, the Art Gallery considering that a replica was inappropriate for exhibition in the gallery, gave the panels to the then Museum of Applied Arts and Sciences...' From article 'Resurrection time for the Gates of Paradise', The Sydney Morning Herald, 2 December 1987, p.5
SOURCE
Credit Line
Gift of Art Gallery Of New South Wales, 1986
Acquisition Date
25 November 1986
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