Uciinc, he studied art at the Brcra Academy in 

 Milan. Well known and appreciated as a sculptor 

 and engraver in the artistic circles of Rome since the 

 time of Pope Pius XI, he exhibited in 1928 at the 

 "Biennale" in Venice. In later years he was awarded 

 the first prize with gold medal at the International 

 Exhibition of the Medal in Madrid, 1951, for his 

 composition Laetizia. 



His first accomplishments at the mint were the 

 die engravings for the gold and silver coins of 1936 

 and 1937, created by Giuseppe Romagnoli.^-" The 

 substantial plasticity of Motti's engravings, rich in 

 detail and modulation of plane, settles in Giampaoli's 

 technique into a more linear treatment of relief. 

 Apparently under the dictate of practical considera- 

 tion, which requires a smooth surface on the coin 

 for easy stacking, Giampaoli tended to flatten the 

 relief, as can ije seen on most of the coins created 

 after World War II (fig. 13.S). 



Fig. 135. — It.m.v. Republic. 20 lire. 1957'" 

 (Div. of Numismatics photo) 



This tcchnicjue is apparent not only in his earlier 

 engravings but throughout his entire career as a coin 

 engra\er. In this respect the coins diff'er greatly 

 from the medals, which achieve their excellence rather 

 through massive and well-rounded relief. One of his 

 most recent creations, the 500-lire piece of 1958, the 

 first silver coin struck in Italy after World War II, 

 shows the same low relief which was adapted for a 

 composition otherwise in the spirit of the Renaissance 

 (fig. 136). The distinctive harmony of this coin re- 

 veals Giampaoli's nov'el approach to solving the esthet- 

 ic problems of modern coin engraving. A profound 

 admirer of Renaissance art, he succeeded in com- 

 pletely a.ssimilating the essence of the art concept of 

 the 1 5th century. 



He is so deeply affected by the sjjirit of the Renais- 



sance that his creations can be considered less an 

 interpretation than a real revival of an art concept. 

 Many Italian artists and especially engravers have 

 directed their attention, during the last few decades, 

 toward the Renaissance, seeking inspiration or solu- 

 tions for technical problems. Some of the medals of 

 Mistruzzi already show the beneficial influence of 

 Renaissance art in the simple flow of line and relief. 



Fig. 136. — It.^i.v, Republic, 500 lire [1958] '-' 

 (Div. of Numismatics photo) 



Others have tried to adopt the vigorous style of these 

 early masters of the medal, but only a few have 

 succeeded in aljsorbing so completely their art 

 concepts as Giampaoli has. 



Best e\idencc of this is his medals, where all ele- 

 ments, artistic and technical, have merged to pro- 

 duce an amazing new movement in modern Italian 

 engraving. Unified in conception, precise, bold in 

 relief, at the same time graceful and harmonious, 

 Giampaoli's portrait medals are outstanding and 

 original. As a portraitist Giampaoli gives evidence 

 of a limited use of realism, which permits him a more 

 subjective interpretation of physiognomic traits. 

 A certain static meditativeness takes away an immedi- 

 ate vivacity, conferring instead on the figures a more 

 statuary quality.'-' Broad planes with a well-molded 

 relief add to their compactness. The casting tech- 

 nicjue, more widely used by Giampaoli than the 

 striking method, certainly enhances these efl"ects. 

 The surrounding legend, conceived as a sculptural 

 element, as a component part of the composition, 

 usually completely encloses the bust, sometimes in 

 two or three dense rows. 



One of the most remarkable creations in this series, 

 signed by the artist as jo.\nnf.s paulvs, is a medal 

 dedicated to his wife Laetitia .Savonitto for their 



326 1'or his more recent work, engraved from designs by 

 Giuseppe Romagnoli, on the issues of the Italian Repuljlic, sec; 

 Pagani, Monele ilaliane, pp. 82-86; Raymond, p. 77; Yeoman, 

 Catalog oj World Coins, pp. 278-2:'9. 



"? Pagani, Momie ilaliane, coin 1352; Yeoman, p. 280, coin 

 A102. 



32S Pagani, Monele ilaliane, coin 1.311. 



'29 He also engraved in 1956 a medal of Queen Elizabeth II 

 of England, commemorating her sixth anniversary of reign — 

 published in IN (1957), p. 81. For other medals, sec Patrig- 

 nani, /.V (1952), vol. 3, no. 2, pp. 12-13; IN (1952), vol. 3, no. 

 5, pp. 43-45; /.V(1955), vol. 6, no. 4, p. 27. 



60 



BULLETIN 229: CONTRIBUTIONS FROM THE Ml.SEUM OF HISTORY .XND TECHNOLOGY 



