Giovanni Stanetti

Who is Giovanni Stanetti?

Giovanni Stanetti was an Austrian sculptor who learned his craft in Venice. His most famous work is the sculptures and balustrade of the Lower Belvedere, in the Belvedere Castle, Vienna.

He was born in Oberglogau near Oppeln, capital of Upper Silesia, which was then part of Austria. He had a sculpture workshop in Venice. Prince Eugene of Savoy managed to persuade him to move to Vienna, along with his workshop.

From 1700 to 1721, in collaboration with architect Lukas von Hildebrandt, he created a series of sculptures for the balustrades and other decorative sculpture for the Lower Belvedere in Vienna. Other works include the 1700 relief for the tombstone of Count Siegfried Sarau in the Deutschordenskirche, the relief on the gable of the Karlskirche, entitled the Apotheosis of St. Charles Borromeo in memory of the plague, and a further plague monument in Baden bei Wien, featuring Mary Magdalene.

In 1712, following the death of Emperor Joseph I, he became court sculptor.