CIRCA 1880

Details

An Italian green-serpentine marble model of the Warwick vase
Circa 1880
On a later associated marmo giallo antico base with paw feet
8 in. (20 cm.) high

Provenance

Displayed in the Garden Room of the Private Apartment of H.R.H. The Princess Margaret, Countess of Snowdon at Kensington Palace.

Special notice

No VAT will be charged on the hammer price, but VAT at 15% will be added to the buyer's premium which is invoiced on a VAT inclusive basis.

Lot Essay

The original Warwick vase, a monumental white marble antiquity, was discovered at Tivoli by Gavin Hamiliton in 1771 on the site of Hadrian's Villa near Rome. It was purchased by the English collector, Sir William Hamilton, who took advantage of the relaxation in laws prohibiting the removal of such Antiquities from the Papal states. After restoration in Rome, the vase was sold to his nephew George Greville, Earl of Warwick for display at Warwick Castle. Whilst the Earl was reluctant to have copies made, reductions were, however, produced from the engravings of Piranesi. The vase, wreathed by vines and Bacchic heads is now Glasgow's Burrell Collection. This reduction lacks the vine handles of the original.

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