Alexander the Great

Wedgwood and Bentley

ca. 1779–80 · Black basalt ware · European Sculpture and Decorative Arts

Alongside developing wares for the middle-class market, Wedgwood and Bentley catered to the elite fascination with antiquity by making busts for display in private libraries. With thick curls and a handsome face, this basalt copy of an ancient bust from the Capitoline Museum in Rome is thought to depict Alexander the Great as Helios the sun god. Ideal male beauties, including classical sculptures of heroes and gods, were used to show off an owner’s refined taste. Covertly, they could serve as symbols of same-sex desire at a time when homosexuality was illegal in Britain.

Artist

Wedgwood and Bentley

Date

ca. 1779–80

Medium

Black basalt ware

Culture

British, Etruria, Staffordshire

Department

European Sculpture and Decorative Arts

Credit line

Gift of the Starr and Wolfe Family, 2018