Gregorio Zappalà (13 December 1833 in Siracusa – 28 December 1908 in

Messina Messina ( , ; ; ; ) is a harbour city and the capital city, capital of the Italian Metropolitan City of Messina. It is the third largest city on the island of Sicily, and the 13th largest city in Italy, with a population of 216,918 inhabitants ...

) was an Italian sculptor. Before he committed to becoming a craftsman in a bronze foundry, the profession of his father; the tried his hand as painter; then mosaicist, and finally engraver. For the next 16 years, he vacillated among professions, till by 1860, he focused on sculpture, after a brief study of design at the University of Messina. In 1861, he was commissioned a bust of General Enrico Cialdini by the city of Messina; this gained him a three-year stipend to work in Rome. Among his main works: Eight sculptural groups (1870) at the Fountain of Neptune in

Piazza Navona Piazza Navona () is a public open space in Rome, Italy. It is built on the site of the 1st century AD Stadium of Domitian and follows the form of the open space of the stadium in an elongated oval. The ancient Romans went there to watch the '' a ...

in Rome, won by contest. The original basin had been completed by

Giacomo Della Porta Giacomo della Porta (1533–1602) was an Italian architect and sculptor. Most likely born in Genoa or Porlezza, Italy, his work was inspired by famous Renaissance artists such as Michelangelo and Giacomo Barozzi da Vignola. He started in his car ...

in the 17th century. The central Neptune sculpture was created by Antonio della Bitta with the remaining figures by Zappala. Zappala also completed a ''St Peter'', one of the 12 statues at the basilica of San Paolo Fuori le Mura in Rome. He was awarded a medal and diploma in the first contest for the monument to King Vittorio Emanuele II. He completed monuments to Giuseppe La Farina and Francesco Miceli found in the camposanto of

, and the first of these at the Promotrice of Rome, won the silver medal of honor. He sculpted a copy of the Fountain of Neptune, (larger than life), to replace the prior work by

Giovanni Angelo Montorsoli Giovanni Angelo Montorsoli (1507 – 31 August 1563), also known as Giovann'Agnolo Montorsoli, was a Florentine sculptor and Servite friar. He is today as often remembered for his restorations of famous classical works as his original crea ...

in Messina. He also sculpted Portrait of his dead wife, and many other busts and small monuments. Zappala was knighted in the

Order of the Crown of Italy The Order of the Crown of Italy ( or OCI) was founded as a national order in 1868 by King Victor Emmanuel II of Italy, Vittorio Emanuele II, to commemorate Italian unification, the unification of Italy in 1861. It was awarded in five degrees for ...

. He died during the

1908 Messina earthquake A devastating earthquake occurred on 28 December 1908 in Sicily and Calabria, southern Italy with a moment magnitude of 7.1 and a maximum Mercalli intensity of XI (''Extreme''). The epicentre was in the Strait of Messina which separates Sicily f ...

. ''Dizionario degli Artisti Italiani Viventi: pittori, scultori, e Architetti.''
by Angelo de Gubernatis. Tipe dei Successori Le Monnier, 1889, page 559.

References

1833 births 1908 deaths People from Syracuse, Sicily Kingdom of the Two Sicilies people Italian sculptors Italian male sculptors Victims of the 1908 Messina earthquake {{Italy-sculptor-stub