Antonio Canova invented a new genre with his Ideal Heads. They were intended as gifts for close friends and persons he admired as an expression of his affection and gratitude. Starting from the famous bust La Riconoscenza, this magnificent large-format volume offers an impressive survey of these unique expressions of friendship.

Canova’s masterpiece La Riconocenza (Gratitude) was long thought to have been lost. It is a tribute to his most important critic, the cultural theorist Quatremère de Quincy. The sculpture was commissioned by the artist Marquise de Grollier as a gift for their mutual friend. These three distinguished individuals left their mark on the cultural life of their time. The author traces the history of the genesis of La Riconocenza through their remarkable correspondence and integrates it into the context of Canova’s Teste ideale.