The arrival in Genoa of the Florentine sculptor Francesco Fanelli (1577 – post 1662) in the early 17th century can be seen as part of a more extensive series of contacts with Florence that had seen in the painter Giovanni Battista Paggi, on excellent terms with Giambologna, an intermediary for important commissions. Through an analysis of the documented production, the present work examines the sculptor's Genoese activity, highlighting Fanelli's role as an innovator who would seem to have had an effect on the conventional models proposed by the families of Lombard sculptors present in the city and particularly on the development of Tommaso Orsolino.