Something new in the sculpture loggia

Villa San Michele opens the 2022 season with two new pieces inside the sculpture loggia. A marble bas-relief from 14-17 A.D. now enriches the collection and the original bust of the emperor Tiberius is back on its column.

The relief, which shows a Dionysian scene in a rural landscape, was found during the excavations of Villa Jovis in Capri in the 1820s. Since then it has been kept in the Archaeological Museum of Naples (MANN). Thanks to the collaboration that has developed between VSM and MANN, it has been loaned for a year and is now visible in the sculpture loggia.
“It is important that the cultural institutions of our territory network as much as possible, both to help each other and to be more accessible to visitors”, commented the director of the MANN Paolo Giulierini.
MANN and Villa San Michele have for some years already had discounts on tickets for visitors to both museums.
Among the guests of the ceremony, the director of the Certosa di Capri Pierfrancesco Talamo, the councilor for culture of Anacapri Manuela Schiano, the director of the Swedish Institute of Rome Ulf Hansson and fellows of Villa San Michele.
“It is a strange coincidence that a copy of the relief, excavated in our garden, is hidden in a corner of the cubiculum of Villa San Michele. Axel Munthe must have really loved this particular job, ” said VSM superintendent Kristina Kappelin.
The original bust of Emperor Tiberius has also returned to the sculpture loggia after many years. It was stolen from the Villa in 1991, but returned 22 years later thanks to the work of the Italian archaeological police. Now the emperor of Capri reigns over his column again. He ruled the entire Roman Empire from the island in 26-37 AD. The bust highlights Tiberius' dual personality: a man made vulnerable by his inner struggles, but at the same time feared by the outside world.