Michelangelo's Bacchus and the Limits of Decency

• In Event: The Human Stain: Indecency and De-Idealization of the Body II

Abstract

In 1496, Cardinal Raffaele Riario commissioned Michelangelo to carve a statue of Bacchus to adorn his new palazzo. The result was impressive. The Bacchus perfectly imitated the classical style the cardinal so admired. It was also bold in conception. Clearly intoxicated, the god was portrayed with his hips thrust forward, his head lolling to one side, and his cup raised in drunken salutation. But Cardinal Riario was repelled. Refusing to have it in his household, he withheld the final payment. But what made it so indecent? By examining contemporary treatments of similar subjects, and the responses of Michelangelo’s coevals, this paper will demonstrate that it was neither the artistry nor the classicising manner of the work that was at fault, but the sexual connotations of the god’s pose, and the invitation to share in unspoken pleasures implicit in his gesture that offended its original patron, yet delighted its ultimate owner.

Author

• Alexander Christopher Lee, University of Warwick