Patio from the Castle of Vélez Blanco
| Patio from the Castle of Vélez Blanco | |
|---|---|
 |
|
| Completion date | 1515 |
| Dimensions | 33 ft (10 m) × 44 ft (13 m) × 63 ft (19 m) |
| Location | Metropolitan Museum of Art |
| Accession No. | 41.190.482 
|
| Identifiers | The Met object ID: 199003 |
|
[]
|
|
Patio from the Castle of Vélez Blanco is a 1510s marble patio; an example of Spanish Renaissance architecture. It is in the collection of the Metropolitan Museum of Art. It was originally part of the Castillo de Vélez-Blanco in Vélez-Blanco, Andalusia, Spain. The patio now serves as the entrance of the museum's Thomas J. Watson Library and to showcase the museum's Italian Renaissance statues.
The patio was built from 1506 to 1515 for the Governor of Murcia, Pedro Fajardo, 1st Marquis of los Vélez, as part of the Castillo de Vélez-Blanco in Vélez-Blanco, Andalusia. It was crafted out of marble of Macael by Northern Italian sculptors and artisans. After political unrest in Spain, the castle was abandoned by the early 19th century. In 1904, the castle's owners removed and sold the entire patio to a Parisian dealer, whereupon it was transported to Paris.
George and Florence Meyer Blumenthal purchased the patio in 1913 and initially used it as a centerpiece for their private house on Park Avenue in Manhattan. It remained there until he gifted the patio to the Metropolitan Museum of Art on the year of his death (1941), also during his tenure as president of the museum. In 1945, the patio was removed and shipped in blocks to the Met; Blumenthal's house was subsequently razed. The patio was moved into museum storage and remained there until around 1963. At that time, Olga Raggio undertook a five-year research study of the patio, and reconstructed and installed it in the museum in 1964. During the reconstruction, Raggio had two arches and other more modern elements from Blumenthal's ownership removed.
...
Wikipedia