Battista Spagnoli's bust

In line with traditional iconography, Battista Spagnoli is depicted wearing the outfit of a Carmelite, of which he was Prior General from 1513. This high-quality sculpture is undoubtedly based on the real person, and is distinguished for the three-quarter length cut of the figure which features his hand holding a large book, alluding to his great qualities as a humanist. Produced in glazed terracotta, this sculpture is held in high esteem, not only for the ideas behind it, which draw on the influence of Mantegna, but also for the great technical qualities that it possesses. It was formerly kept at the Church of the Carmine in Mantua, where Spagnoli was a prior from 1479.