PROBABLY ITALIAN, MID-19TH CENTURY

The vases are modelled after the celebrated Antique marble 'Borghese' and 'Medici' originals believed to date from the first century A.D and named for the noble families they belonged to. The Medici vase was first recorded at the Villa Medici in Rome in the late 16th century while the Borghese vase was excavated in the 16th century and remained in the possession of Borghese family until 1807 when it was bought from Prince Camillo Borghese by his brother-in-law Napoleon Bonaparte.