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Lot Essay
The wreathed bucrania featured on the present console tables derive from designs by Giovanni Battista Piranesi (some of which are ill. in J. Wilton-Ely, Giovanni Battista Piranesi: The Complete Etchings, vol. II, San Francisco, 1994, p. 1032, fig. 954), whilst further related designs of comparable garlanded bucrania are illustrated in A. Desgodetz, Les Edifices Antiques de Rome, Paris, 1682, p.136, 'Du Temple de Jupiter Tonant à Rome, Ornements qui sont en la fries par le flanc'. Furthermore, the depiction of Pliny's Doves to the central tablet derives from the original mosaic panel discovered in 1737 in the Villa Adriana (125-133 AD), later acquired by Pope Clement XIII and now in the Museo Capitolino in Rome.
With its pronounced architectural lines, swagged panelled frieze with central tablet, and Piranesi-influenced wreathed bucrania, these console tables tipify the Roman neoclassical style and relate to several known examples: The Quirinale console table features a comparable panelled frieze with wreathed bucrania interspersed with ribbon-tied foliate swags, on upswept foliate-wrapped feet (ill. in Alvar-González-Palacios, Il Patrimonio Artistico del Quirinale, I Mobili Italiani, Milan, 1996, p. 198, fig. 67), while the related example conserved in the Museo Napoleonico is illustrated in E. Colle, Il Mobile Neoclassico in Italia, arredi e decorazioni d'interni dal 1775 al 1800, Milan, 2005, p.146, fig. 31). A further related console table is in the Villa Borghese, Rome, (ill. ibid, p. 143, fig.30, with the en suite corner consoles, p.145), and finally another example is illustrated in G. Morazzoni, Il Mobile Neoclassico Italiano, Milan, 1955, Tav. VIII.
With its pronounced architectural lines, swagged panelled frieze with central tablet, and Piranesi-influenced wreathed bucrania, these console tables tipify the Roman neoclassical style and relate to several known examples: The Quirinale console table features a comparable panelled frieze with wreathed bucrania interspersed with ribbon-tied foliate swags, on upswept foliate-wrapped feet (ill. in Alvar-González-Palacios, Il Patrimonio Artistico del Quirinale, I Mobili Italiani, Milan, 1996, p. 198, fig. 67), while the related example conserved in the Museo Napoleonico is illustrated in E. Colle, Il Mobile Neoclassico in Italia, arredi e decorazioni d'interni dal 1775 al 1800, Milan, 2005, p.146, fig. 31). A further related console table is in the Villa Borghese, Rome, (ill. ibid, p. 143, fig.30, with the en suite corner consoles, p.145), and finally another example is illustrated in G. Morazzoni, Il Mobile Neoclassico Italiano, Milan, 1955, Tav. VIII.