Between ancient and all'antica: The imitation of Roman coins in the Renaissance (Giovanni da Cavino, Italy)

Ancient Roman coins were attractive in the Renaissance because they survived in great volume and were thus available to a large number of humanists and collectors across Europe. As the demand for these tangible relics of the ancient world increased, they became scarcer and increasingly expensive. From an early stage, enterprising medallists took advantage of this situation by forging ancient coins with the intention of deceiving their purchasers for financial gain. Alongside these duplicitous artists, however, was a class of medallist who produced imitations of ancient coins whose modernity was not concealed, but celebrated.; There has been a great deal of debate over the motivation behind the imitation of ancient coins, with some scholars arguing that all such objects were intended to deceive. This dissertation demonstrates that, in fact, the Renaissance period was a fertile environment for both genuine and invented antiquities. The simultaneous praise and derision directed towards imitation coins is indicative of the coexistence of a nostalgic passion for the ancient world which encouraged reproductions of antiquities or works of art in the ancient fashion (all'antica) alongside an empirical view which sought to objectively study antiquity's remains.; This complexity found in the Renaissance approach to antiquity is explored in the first chapter through an analysis of the acceptance and promotion of reconstructions of the ancient world. The second chapter investigates the important role played by ancient coins in this endeavor as both moralizing agents representative of ancient virtue and archaeological documents used to illuminate aspects of ancient society. Similarly, chapter three demonstrates how Renaissance artists employed ancient coins as both general vehicles for creating an antique aura in their works and sources for the reuse of specific ancient symbolism. The simultaneous presence of original, copied and invented antiques in Renaissance collections, the subject of chapter four, further illustrates the secure place of imitative antiquities. Through an analysis of the medallic oeuvre of the Paduan artist Giovanni da Cavino, the final chapter applies the context outlined in the previous chapters to demonstrate the desirability, function, and promotion of imitation ancient coins in the Renaissance.