Gasparo Molo (also spelt Mola or Moli) was an Italian

goldsmith A goldsmith is a Metalworking, metalworker who specializes in working with gold and other precious metals. Nowadays they mainly specialize in jewelry-making but historically, goldsmiths have also made cutlery, silverware, platter (dishware), pl ...

and planisher, chiefly known as a medalist.

Biography

Born (according to Forrer) in Breglia near

Como Como (, ; lmo, Còmm, label=Comasco dialect, Comasco , or ; lat, Novum Comum; rm, Com; french: Côme) is a city and ''comune'' in Lombardy, Italy. It is the administrative capital of the Province of Como. Its proximity to Lake Como and ...

or (according to older records) in

Lugano Lugano (, , ; lmo, label=Ticinese dialect, Ticinese, Lugan ) is a city and municipality in Switzerland, part of the Lugano District in the canton of Ticino. It is the largest city of both Ticino and the Italian-speaking southern Switzerland. Luga ...

, his date of death is unknown. He was first active in

Milan Milan ( , , Lombard: ; it, Milano ) is a city in northern Italy, capital of Lombardy, and the second-most populous city proper in Italy after Rome. The city proper has a population of about 1.4 million, while its metropolitan city h ...

, then in

Mantua Mantua ( ; it, Mantova ; Lombard language, Lombard and la, Mantua) is a city and ''comune'' in Lombardy, Italy, and capital of the Province of Mantua, province of the same name. In 2016, Mantua was designated as the Italian Capital of Culture ...

, from 1608 in

Florence Florence ( ; it, Firenze ) is a city in Central Italy and the capital city of the Tuscany region. It is the most populated city in Tuscany, with 383,083 inhabitants in 2016, and over 1,520,000 in its metropolitan area.Bilancio demografico an ...

; his first surviving signed medal is from the latter period. Here he was ''maestro delle stampe della monete''. In 1609 he became well known for his medals commemorating the marriage and the accession of Cosimo II. In 1609 and 1610 he cut the dies for the

thaler A thaler (; also taler, from german: Taler) is one of the large silver coins minted in the states and territories of the Holy Roman Empire and the Habsburg monarchy during the Early Modern period. A ''thaler'' size silver coin has a diameter of ...

s and the "medals of merit" conferred by the grand duke. According to Kenner, it is not necessary to suppose that he gave up his connection with the Florentine court at this time, because, in the following years, he struck medals for the court in Mantua, as well as coins for

Guastalla Guastalla ( Guastallese: ) is a town and ''comune'' in the province of Reggio Emilia in Emilia-Romagna, Italy. Geography Guastalla is situated in the Po Valley, and lies on the banks of the Po River. Guastalla is located at around from the citie ...

and Castiglione, especially as he was again working in Florence in 1614 (certainly in 1615). The medals, which he made after 1620 for Prince Vincenzo II of Mantua, may very well also have been struck at Florence. His further sojourn in

Tuscany Tuscany ( ; it, Toscana ) is a Regions of Italy, region in central Italy with an area of about and a population of about 3.8 million inhabitants. The regional capital is Florence (''Firenze''). Tuscany is known for its landscapes, history, art ...

seems to have been rendered distasteful to him by intrigues. About 1623 he moved to Rome, where he became a die-cutter at the Papal mint in place of J. A. Moro, who died in 1625. Here he made a great many coins and medals for

Urban VIII Pope Urban VIII ( la, Urbanus VIII; it, Urbano VIII; baptised 5 April 1568 – 29 July 1644), born Maffeo Vincenzo Barberini, was head of the Catholic Church and ruler of the Papal States from 6 August 1623 to his death in July 1644. As po ...

(1623–44),

Innocent X Pope Innocent X ( la, Innocentius X; it, Innocenzo X; 6 May 1574 – 7 January 1655), born Giovanni Battista Pamphilj (or Pamphili), was head of the Catholic Church and ruler of the Papal States from 15 September 1644 to his death in January ...

(1644–55), and

Alexander VII Pope Alexander VII ( it, Alessandro VII; 13 February 159922 May 1667), born Fabio Chigi, was head of the Catholic Church and ruler of the Papal States from 7 April 1655 to his death in May 1667. He began his career as a vice- papal legate, an ...

(1655–57). His last works date from 1664. As it seems strange that Molo should, at the age of eighty-four, still continue working with unabated strength, it is thought that another artist of his name - perhaps his son - continued Gasparo's work. Indeed, a G. D. Molo is attested in 1639, who might have been a son of Gasparo and who apparently died young; but it is more likely that Gasparo founded a school in Rome, and that his engravers worked according to his instructions and his style, but passed off their works under his name and with his signature. One of his numerous pupils was his successor at the Mint, Hamerani (Hameran, a German), the founder of the long-lived Hamerani family of artists. As long as cast medals were generally used, public interest in the portrait predominated, and the reverse was usually neglected. This changed with the introduction of stamping, which Molo preferred, and in which he developed new techniques.

Sources

* cites **Kenner in ''Jahrb. der kunsthistor. Sammlungen des Ah. Kaiserhauses'', XII (Vienna, 1891), 137-49; **

Leonard Forrer Leonard Forrer or Leonhard Forrer (7 November 1869, Winterthur, Switzerland - 17 November 1953, Bromley, United Kingdom) was a Swiss-born numismatist and coin dealer. He was later naturalised as a British subject.Herbert A. Cahn: ''Leonard Forrer ...

, ''Biographical Dictionary of Medallists'', etc. (4 vols., London, 1902–09).

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Molo, G Italian goldsmiths Italian medallists Year of birth unknown Year of death unknown 17th-century Italian people