Provenance Studies of the Marble of Ancient Sculptures in the Tribune of the Uffizi Gallery, Florence

• Published in: Archaeometry Vol. 57; no. S1; pp. 74 - 89
• Main Authors: Attanasio, D., Boschi, C., Bracci, S., Cantisani, E., Paolucci, F.
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Oxford Blackwell Publishing Ltd 01-07-2015; Wiley Subscription Services, Inc
• Subjects: EPR; Isotopes; Marble Provenance; Petrography; Sculptures; Tribuna Uffizi
• ISSN: 0003-813X; 1475-4754
• DOI: 10.1111/arcm.12121

The provenance of the marbles used for the five ancient sculptures on display in the Tribune of the Uffizi—the Venere Medici, the Apollo Medici, the Satiro danzante, the Arrotino and the Lottatori—has been determined using a well‐established multi‐method approach that includes isotopic, petrographic and EPR data. The Arrotino was found to be made of Docimium marble from the Phrygian quarries of Iscehisar, whereas Parian lychnites was used for the other four sculptures. Restorations, including the restoration of the Satiro ascribed to Michelangelo or his school, primarily used Pentelicon marble. The Lottatori, however, underwent multiple restorations that used a lychnites analytically different from the original stock, as well as Docimium, Carrara and Göktepe marbles. The right arm of the winner, which was considered to be a later addition, turned out to be made using the original marble—lychnites marble. The marble data provide support for the chronology of the sculptures and give insight into the complex sequence of restorations that they underwent.