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Lot Essay
Little is known about Andreoni other than he ran a studio in Rome in the later 19th century. He is recorded as exhibiting in Turin in 1884, in Berlin in 1892 and in Munich in 1893.
This finely carved urn carries subtle and somewhat obscure iconography perhaps relating to day and night. The white oval medallion on the front carries the delicate bas-relief of two air-borne female figures, one shooting an arrow, perhaps Diana, goddess of the moon and hunting. The stag head handles could also make a reference to Diana. Above her rises the triumphant figure of the maiden carrying a blazing torch, perhaps Aurora, goddess of the dawn. On the neck of the urn, above the medallion and some ears of wheat, is a sun-like masque, perhaps a reference to Apollo.
On the reverse, the medallion is plain, but above it, on the neck, appears a crescent moon and a star, while at the base of the plaque, carved into the frame, appears an owl with its wings outstretched. These are all symbols that could be associated with the night, the crescent moon in particular with Diana.
This finely carved urn carries subtle and somewhat obscure iconography perhaps relating to day and night. The white oval medallion on the front carries the delicate bas-relief of two air-borne female figures, one shooting an arrow, perhaps Diana, goddess of the moon and hunting. The stag head handles could also make a reference to Diana. Above her rises the triumphant figure of the maiden carrying a blazing torch, perhaps Aurora, goddess of the dawn. On the neck of the urn, above the medallion and some ears of wheat, is a sun-like masque, perhaps a reference to Apollo.
On the reverse, the medallion is plain, but above it, on the neck, appears a crescent moon and a star, while at the base of the plaque, carved into the frame, appears an owl with its wings outstretched. These are all symbols that could be associated with the night, the crescent moon in particular with Diana.