Personification of the Fiumelatte river

myminifactory

The monumental masterpiece, crafted primarily from brick, stone, and lava, reached completion in 1580 and shelters a series of compact rooms beneath and within it, including a grotto with a fountain where Francesco would frequently entertain his guests. This composition is a bold reinterpretation of the classical River God, typically depicted reclining on one elbow. The sculptor Giambologna was well-versed in the numerous surviving examples from his extensive study of sculpture in Rome between 1550 and 1553, and again in 1572, when he was sent there by Grand Duke Cosimo I de' Medici, accompanied by Vasari and fellow sculptor Ammanati.