Thetis Running (c. 1527): Art, History and Details

Thetis Running (c. 1527) is in the Cleveland Museum of Art collection. The museum's creator attribution is Severo da Ravenna (Italian, c. 1496–c. 1543).

The work and its context

The museum's open-access catalogue describes the work:

The complex, corkscrew-like twist of the figure’s body around a central axis indicates that this work was meant to be seen and admired in the round. Producing a sculpture of a body in motion posed a challenge for Renaissance artists, and complex compositions like this were often adapted from prints and paintings. The pose of this bronze statuette may have been inspired by a print representing the Greek sea goddess Thetis. Thetis was courted by the gods Zeus (Jupiter) and Poseidon (Neptune), but was eventually married to the mortal Peleus; the Greek hero Achilles was their son. In the print, Thetis pours water from a jug held at her hip and her upraised foot rests on a large shell, both referencing her role as sea goddess. The statuette’s lack of identifying attributes encourages the viewer to focus instead on the figure’s graceful spiraling form, and the sculptor’s skill in creating a convincing sense of movement.

Object facts

• Title: Thetis Running
• Date: c. 1527
• Creator attribution: Severo da Ravenna (Italian, c. 1496–c. 1543)
• Culture: Italy, Ravenna, 16th century
• Type: Sculpture
• Technique: bronze
• Dimensions: Overall: 18.2 cm (7 3/16 in.)
• Collection: Sculpture
• Department: European Painting and Sculpture
• Accession number: 1963.92

Collection credit

Norman O. Stone and Ella A. Stone Memorial Fund

Further reading listed by the museum

• The Cleveland Museum of Art. Handbook of the Cleveland Museum of Art/1966. Cleveland, OH: The Cleveland Museum of Art, 1966.
• The Cleveland Museum of Art. Handbook of the Cleveland Museum of Art/1969. Cleveland, OH: The Cleveland Museum of Art, 1969.
• The Cleveland Museum of Art. Handbook of the Cleveland Museum of Art/1978. Cleveland, OH: The Cleveland Museum of Art, 1978.

View the collection record

See the museum's photographs and full catalogue entry. Catalogue text is reproduced from the Cleveland Museum of Art's open-access data, with HTML formatting removed. This object and its supplied image are designated CC0.