A ROMAN MARBLE DOLPHIN SUPPORT

CIRCA 1ST CENTURY A.D.

Details

A ROMAN MARBLE DOLPHIN SUPPORT
CIRCA 1ST CENTURY A.D.
Well-modelled, the head down, the undulating tail upraised, the flippers and dorsal fin rendered, the almond-shaped eyes bulging, the nasal sacks drilled, the beak parted revealing two rows of teeth, on a high integral plinth, the remains of support struts and an iron pin on the proper right side, likely for attachment to a separately-made figure
26 3/8 in. (67 cm.) high

Provenance

with Jean Mikas, Paris, 1950s.
European Private Collection.
Anonymous sale; Christie's, New York, 8 June 2005, lot 160.

Lot Essay

The dolphin often accompanies Venus, alluding to her birth from the sea. For sculptures where the dolphin serves as the goddess's support see the Medici Venus now in the Uffizi Gallery and examples in the Palazzo Colonna and the Museo Nazionale in Rome, nos. 419 and 424-425 in Delivorrias, et al., "Aphrodite" in LIMC.

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