ITALIAN, 18TH CENTURY

This group of heraldic lions is a rare survival of large scale 18th century terracotta sculpture. And while clearly derived from Donatallo's Lion of Florence ('Marzocco') of 1418-20, they have a Baroque theatricality that make them unique. The extreme difficulty in firing these large-scale models as well as the fragility of the material and the fact there are still four remaining, make them particularly rare. They would surely have decorated the entrance hall or gallery of a significant building and illustrating, very clearly, the noble family's coat-of-arms. Unfortunately, until further research is done to connect them to a particular decoration or building project, it will remain unclear exactly which family these represent. The Italian families which include only a single star in their coat-of-arms are: the Danzetta (Perugia), Engleshi (Padua), Ingoli (Ravenna-Venice), Moysi (Udine), Nadale (Venice), Da Santa (Padua) and Stella (Bari).