Monument to Giovanni delle Bande Nere, Florence

Monument to Giovanni delle Bande Nere
Monument Giovanni delle Bande Nere, Florence
LocationPiazza San Lorenzo in Florence, Tuscany, Italy
Coordinates43°46′30.04″N 11°15′17.88″E / 43.7750111°N 11.2549667°E / 43.7750111; 11.2549667
DesignerBaccio Bandinelli
Materialmarble
Beginning date1540
Completion date1560
Dedicated toGiovanni delle Bande Nere

The Monument to Giovanni delle Bande Nere is an Italian Renaissance sculpture in marble, by Baccio Bandinelli and his workshop, now in Piazza San Lorenzo in Florence, Tuscany, Italy. The work took from 1540 to after 1560 to carve, and the base and statue, though always meant to be together, were only so placed in 1850.

The imposing Giovanni sits, somewhat uncomfortably, wearing a metallic cuirass on his torso. Without a helmet or army boots, he holds a baton of command on his knee. The plinth is almost more decorative with festoons and bucranium, and Doric columns at the corners. One bas-relief appears to show soldiers bringing booty and captives before a sitting ruler. Others depict the Medici coat of arms. The corners have doric pilaster-columns.