Aeneas, Anchises, and Ascanius by Gian Lorenzo Bernini
Nearly two millennia after Vergil wrote his famed epic the Aeneid, Gian Lorenzo Bernini created his first life-sized sculpture, Aeneas, Anchises, and Ascanius, commissioned c. 1618 by his patron, Cardinal Scipione Borghese.[1] According to Hibbard, it contains “more of his father’s old-fashioned style than [his] other works.”[2] His father was a famed Mannerist; since the piece contains Mannerist elements and Bernini was only 19, it may be plausible that he received help from his father.[3] However, the work is not entirely derivative – Aeneas’ tousled, leonine hair proves that Bernini probably drew from Hellenistic models. Whatever the case, Bernini fashioned this sculpture to tell a story: the flight of the legendary Roman hero, Aeneas. The larger historical context for this sculpture is the Trojan War: the Trojans and Greeks had been warring for years until the Greeks finally devised a plan to invade Troy – the infamous Trojan Horse. After the Trojans accepted the “gift” into their city, the Greek warriors came out of hiding and ransacked the city, ultimately bringing Troy to its fall.[4]
Currently housed in the Galleria Borghese in Rome, the sculpture depicts Aeneas, carrying his father, Anchises away from burning Troy, while his small child, Ascanius, follows close behind. It roughly aligns with the following excerpts of the Aeneid.
English Translation
Therefore, come, dear father, place yourself on my neck; I, myself, will carry you on my shoulders and that burden will not weigh me down; Whatever things will happen, one shared danger, one safety will be for both of us. May little Iulus be my companion, and let my wife follow our footsteps at a distance.
…
You, father, seize the sacred objects and the Penates of our country with your hand;
…
Having spoken these things, I cover my wide shoulders and stooped necks with a vest on top and a pelt of a tawny lion, and I submit to the task; little Iulus placed himself to my left hand and he follows his father with unequal steps; my wife walks behind.
Original Latin
Ergo age, care pater, cervici imponere nostrae; ipse subibo umeris nec me labor iste gravabit; quo res cumque cadent, unum et commune periclum, una salus ambobus erit. Mihi parvus Iulus sit comes, et longe servet vestigia coniunx.[5]
…
Tu, genitor, cape sacra manu patriosque penates;[6]
…
Haec fatus latos umeros subiectaque colla veste super fulvique insternor pelle leonis, succedoque oneri; dextrae se parvus Iulus implicuit sequiturque patrem non passibus aequis; pone subit coniunx.[7]
The robust man, wearing a lion’s skin around his waist, supports his father on his left shoulder with both hands. At the same time, he intently surveys the ground, wary of lurking danger. With his right hand, frail Anchises steadies himself on Aeneas, while, with his left hand, he clutches the Penates (household gods of Troy). Timid Ascanius hides behind his father’s legs, while he carries the eternal flame of Vesta with his left hand.
The three figures, Aeneas, Anchises, and Ascanius, represent three distinct generations of Troy. Aeneas represents the present condition of Troy. There is little hope for both Aeneas and Troy. Both are on the edge of disaster, as shown by the precarious nature of the vertically stacked figures. Bernini highlights Aeneas’ well-defined muscles and entrusts a lion skin to Aeneas, which evokes the strength of Heracles. Aeneas is athletic and youthful but is physically impeded by his family. Hence, Bernini seems to suggest that without the burden of his family, Aeneas could easily escape Troy. But, he does not abandon his family, thereby affirming his pietas. In contrast, Anchises’ facial muscles droop, and his veins protrude from his skin. He is deadweight to Aeneas. By carrying Anchises and, by extension, the Penates, Bernini implies that Aeneas’ pietas obligates him to carry the ancient traditions of Troy with him to his future in Italy. Bernini sculpts Ascanius as a mere toddler, even though his age is never defined by Vergil. Ascanius holds the eternal flame of Vesta, which symbolizes the eventual founding of Alba Longa, the birthplace of Romulus and Remus. This contrast (a helpless child holding a crucial religious object) evidences that Ascanius requires Aeneas’ protection and nurturing before he becomes a king, much like the remaining Trojans rely upon Aeneas’ leadership before the seedlings of Rome can be founded.
Aeneas, Anchises, and Ascanius was a formative piece for Bernini’s career, as he began to experiment with Realism and garner attention from prominent Romans, including Pope Paul V. By capturing the distinct features and emotions of each figure, Bernini showcased the past, present, and future of Troy. In doing so, the sculpture highlights the nature of art to convey emotion and tells the story of the Trojan Prince, Aeneas.
Notes
[1] For a full biography, see Franco Mormando, Bernini: His Life and His Rome, pbk ed. (Chicago: University of Chicago Press, 2013).
[2] Howard Hibbard, Bernini (London: Penguin, 1990), 34.
[3] Joachim von Sandrart, for example, incorrectly attributes the piece to Bernini’s father; see also Hibbard, Bernini, 34.
[4] As Vergil writes, “timeo Danaos et dona ferentes”, “I fear the Greeks, even when bearing gifts.” (Aen. 2.49).
[5] Ver. Aen. 2.705-711
[6] Aen. 2.717
[7] Aen. 2.721-734