A CARVED IVORY FIGURE OF THE APOLLINO

The antique original of the Apollino on which the present ivory is based, is recorded with certainty in the Villa Medici, Rome, in 1704. As with a large number of antiquities acquired by the Medici in Rome, this marble was later transferred to Florence in circa 1769 and by 1770 was placed in the Tribuna at the Uffizi. Like the Wrestlers, the marble was moved to Palermo in 1800 to escape being looted by the occupying French. It was restored to Florence in 1803. In 1806, Denon commented that the figure was a masterpiece of antique sculpture and a much needed addition for the Musée Napoléon.