ABSTRACT
In the sphere of collecting, we see a continuation of the tradition which had established itself in the sixteenth century, of restoring and completing Antique sculpture. Indeed, their restoration and their intended destination followed precepts which immediately allow us to grasp the level of importance accorded to them. First, when the sculptures were exhibited in special loggias or galleries alongside paintings, they were accorded the status of true works of art. Their restoration, which could be largely interpretative, and their choice as a collector’s item, could also depend on a taste for combining different materials, rather like in a Wunderkammer; for instance, at the beginning of the seventeenth century in the Borghese Zingara (which is now in the Louvre) a marble torso integrated with bronze in a restoration probably carried out by Nicolas Cordier, although in the past this was attributed to Bernini.18
