Statue of the Giant

In 1529 Bandinelli received a commission in Genoa to produce a monument to Admiral Andrea I Doria, initially conceived by the government as a bronze statue. After some preparatory drawings had been made by Baccio, its material was changed to marble to save money and to suit his predilections. This commission had a chequered history and was abandoned in 1538, resulting only in several marvellous drawings for the statue and its pedestal (Paris, Louvre) and a roughed-out group with the Admiral in the guise of Neptune standing tamely and improbably on the heads of a pair of dolphins (Carrara, Piazza del Duomo).