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    Sale 1222

    19th Century Furniture, Sculpture, Works of Art and Ceramics

    New York

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    24 April 2003

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    • A large Italian bronze figure
    Lot 214

    A large Italian bronze figure of the Augustus Prima Porta, on pedestal

    AFTER THE ANTIQUE, CAST BY BENEDETTO BOSCHETTI, ROME, CIRCA 1850

    Price realised

    USD 14,340

    Estimate

    USD 10,000 - USD 15,000

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    A large Italian bronze figure of the Augustus Prima Porta, on pedestal
    After the Antique, Cast by Benedetto Boschetti, Rome, Circa 1850
    The circular base inscribed B. BOSCHETTI/ROMA, on a red Levanto marble columnar pedestal
    The bronze: 40¾ in. (103.5 cm.) high; The pedestal: 40 in. (101.6 cm.) high (2)

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    Lot Essay

    The Roman workshop of Benedetto Boschetti, 74 Via Condotti, was active circa 1820-1870 and exhibited at the Crystal Palace Exhibition in 1851. The workshop was renowned for the exceptional quality of its copies, prompting F. S. Bonfigli to note in 1856 that "The establishment is particularly conspicuous for its great variety of marble works, bronzes, etc." (see A. Gonzales-Palacios, The Art of Mosaics, 1982, p. 166.

    This bronze is a copy of an original statue found at Prima Porta, near Rome, which dates from the 1st century B C. and is currently in the Vatican collection. It is thought to have been the first work of sculpture in which the adlocutio stance was utilised, whereby the subject is given a bearing of power and influence by the use of a raised arm, suggesting that he is in the act of addressing his troops or an assembly.

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