Samson Destroying the Temple of the Philistines

Between 1484 and 1490 Bellano made ten bronze reliefs illustrating scenes from the Old Testament for the choir-screen in the Santo in Padua. Initially, the commission had been given to Bertoldo di Giovanni and Giovanni Fonduli, but their trial reliefs were found to be unsatisfactory, and in November 1484 Bellano was commissioned to make the whole cycle.

The ten reliefs are rightly considered among the most prestigious commissions of Bellano’s career. He boldly and purposefully broke with the bronze narrative tradition of both Ghiberti and Donatello, renowned masters of the medium, to create a different type of narrative in bronze. Bellano’s first relief, Samson Destroying the Temple of the Philistines (in situ), is his masterpiece. Vasari praised the dramatic depiction of the scene. The panels are remarkable for their unconventional compositions in which numerous small-scale figures and animals stand out in high relief against mountainous landscape settings. Bellano proved himself to be a remarkable narrative artist.