Dionysus (formerly Called Narcissus Of Pompeii)

Bronze sculpture with brown patina made after the original bronze model discovered in Pompeii in 1862 in the house known as the "Casa de Narcisso", or "house of the statue of Narcissus", a work now preserved at the National Archaeological Museum in Naples.
It rests on a round base bearing the mark of the Chiurazzi Napoli foundry.
Nineteenth-century work,
Height: 62 cm.

In the days following its discovery, this bronze was referred to as a "pearl" when it took its place in the museum's collections.
It was described as "the most splendid ancient masterpiece in existence... its beauty surpassing all other sculptures from Pompeii" (Conforti, c. 1899, p. 10).
Figuring a nude, slender and pensive ephebe, his posture is said to be in "contrapposto".
Initially considered a statue of Narcissus *, it was identified (1981 ?) as that of Dionysus or Bacchus (his Roman name) because of his attributes : grapes, ivy wreath and nebride.
Son of Zeus and Semele, also called Bakkhos in Greek mythology, he is the God of vegetation, and more particularly that of vines and wine.
His cult contributed to the development of lyrical art and tragedy.
This work was the last ancient statue discovered in Italy to enjoy great renown.
From the day of its exhumation until the early 20th century, bronze copies were made in Neapolitan foundries specializing in the reproduction of the so-called "Grand Tour" works from Pompei and Herculaneum: the De Angelis foundry, Fonderia Artistiche Riunite, Giorgio Sommer's, Fonderia Artistica Sommer Napoli, of Michele Amodio... and the Chiurazzi foundry.
First an apprentice and then a worthy disciple of Pietro Masulli, who conceived and put into practice the idea of copying ancient works of Art inspired by Benvenuto Cellini, Gennaro Chuirazzi (1842 - 1904) set up his workshop and an art school at the Reale Ospizio dell'Albergo dei Poveri in Naples.
A master of the "lost wax" casting technique, with a passion for Classical Antiquity and the Renaissance, he obtained permission to make numerous plaster casts of works held in Italian museums, from which he produced magnificent fonts.
A relentless worker, he endowed Naples with two permanent galleries dedicated to ancient art: the first in the Galleria Principe di Napoli, the second on the Piazza dei Martini.
This was how art lovers from Europe and America came to admire and acquire reproductions of ancient works discovered and preserved in Rome, Naples and elsewhere.
He gained international renown and received prestigious awards in Turin, New Orleans...
His success was so resounding at the St. Louis World's Fair (1900) that the American press gave wide coverage to his talent in celebrating Naples and Italy as a whole.
His personality and immense work were honored by important personalities including the Italian royal family.

* The son of a deified river and a nymph famous for her beauty, he despised love.
He was seduced by his own image reflected in the water of a fountain and let himself die for not being able to grasp it.
At the very spot of his death grew the flower that bears his name.