ITALIAN, PROBABLY ROMAN, FIRST HALF 17TH CENTURY

Details

A GILT-BRONZE SALT-CELLAR
ITALIAN, PROBABLY ROMAN, FIRST HALF 17TH CENTURY
In the form of a triton seated on a dolphin and holding aloft a seashell; on a later square porphyry plinth; the bowl of the cellar drilled with a circular hole
6¼ in. (15.9 cm.) high; 7 3/8 in. (18.8 cm.) high, overall

Provenance

Purchased by Alfred (1853-1906) or Otto Beit (1865-1930) between 1904 and 1913.
Thence by descent to Lady (Clementine) Beit (1915-2005) by whom donated to the Alfred Beit Foundation in 2005.

Literature

W. Bode, Catalogue of the Collection of Pictures and Bronzes in the Possession of Mr. Otto Beit, London, 1913, p. 116, no. 282, as 'Bernini'.

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

This inkwell shows certain very general similarities to the work of Roman baroque sculptors such as Bernini, and Bode ascribed the present lot to him in his catalogue of the Beit collection written in 1913. However, the quite distinctive facial type, the rather mannered positioning of the hands, and the very characterfull expression on the dolphin's face are quite different from any documented works by Bernini and may, instead, suggest a Flemish sculptor working in Italy.

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