''Lo Zuccone'' (), which translates from Italian as "large head" or "bald head", is the popular name given to a

marble Marble is a metamorphic rock composed of recrystallized carbonate minerals, most commonly calcite or dolomite. Marble is typically not foliated (layered), although there are exceptions. In geology, the term ''marble'' refers to metamorphose ...

statue A statue is a free-standing sculpture in which the realistic, full-length figures of persons or animals are carved or cast in a durable material such as wood, metal or stone. Typical statues are life-sized or close to life-size; a sculpture t ...

Donatello Donato di Niccolò di Betto Bardi ( – 13 December 1466), better known as Donatello ( ), was a Florentine sculptor of the Renaissance period. Born in Florence, he studied classical sculpture and used this to develop a complete Renaissance st ...

. It was commissioned for the

bell tower A bell tower is a tower that contains one or more bells, or that is designed to hold bells even if it has none. Such a tower commonly serves as part of a Christian church, and will contain church bells, but there are also many secular bell tow ...

of the

Cathedral A cathedral is a church that contains the ''cathedra'' () of a bishop, thus serving as the central church of a diocese, conference, or episcopate. Churches with the function of "cathedral" are usually specific to those Christian denominations ...

Florence, Italy 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 a ...

and completed between 1423 and 1425. It is also known as the ''Statue of the Prophet Habakkuk,'' as many believe it depicts the

Biblical The Bible (from Koine Greek , , 'the books') is a collection of religious texts or scriptures that are held to be sacred in Christianity, Judaism, Samaritanism, and many other religions. The Bible is an anthologya compilation of texts of ...

figure Habakkuk, though Vasari says that it is a portrait (in Biblical garb) of Giovanni di Barduccio Cherichini. The statue is known for its

realism Realism, Realistic, or Realists may refer to: In the arts *Realism (arts), the general attempt to depict subjects truthfully in different forms of the arts Arts movements related to realism include: * Classical Realism *Literary realism, a mov ...

and naturalism, which differed from most statuary commissioned at the time.Lindsay, David - Earl of Crawford (1911) ''Donatello.'' Echo Library (reprint 2008), ''Zuccone'' is reported to have been Donatello's favorite, and he has been claimed to swear by the sculpture, "By the faith I place in my zuccone."Spooner, Shearjashub (1880). ''Anecdotes of painters, engravers, sculptors and architects, and curiosities of art, Volumes 1-3.'' A.W. Lovering Donatello is said to have shouted "speak, damn you, speak!" at the marble as he was carving it. It has been described as the most important marble sculpture of the fifteenth century. It is now in the Museo dell'Opera del Duomo in Florence.

References

External links

Florence Cathedral site (English)
Sculptures in Italy Sculptures by Donatello Renaissance art Sculptures depicting Hebrew Bible prophets Book of Habakkuk Sculptures of men in Italy {{Italy-sculpture-stub