Unknown

Archaic Bronze Bust of Zeus

1900

This extraordinary Italian bronze embodies all of the hallmarks of the very best Florentine sculptures of the 17th century. The work is crafted in the Mannerist style of the late Ren...

After François Girardon 1628-1715 French Pluto Abducting Proserpine Bronze This High Baroque period composition captures the famed narrative of Pluto and Proserpine from Roman mythology. The late 17th-century patinated bronze, created after François Girardon's marble composition, captures the very moment that Pluto seizes Proserpine. The anguished goddess reaches skyward, attempting to escape the god’s grasp while Pluto’s stoic face betrays his knowledge that his ploy will succeed. This pivotal moment in the mythological tale has captured the imagination of many art historical greats, from Bernini to Rubens. François Girardon’s version of the climax demonstrates incredible finesse and artistry, modeled expertly in bronze in the present work by a later sculptor. The statue brings a twist of intertwined bodies into a dynamic frenzy, paralleling the tension of the legendary story. In ancient Roman mythology, Proserpine, the beautiful daughter of Ceres — known as Persephone in Greek mythology — was picking flowers in the fields when she was suddenly abducted by Pluto, the god of the underworld, and taken to his kingdom. Consumed with grief, her mother Ceres, the goddess of agriculture, scorches the earth, stopping the growth of grain and fruit. Jupiter attempts to intervene and secure Proserpine’s return to earth, negotiating a compromise with Pluto and the Fates that allows Proserpine to be released for part of the year before returning to Pluto’s underworld. Proserpine’s journey back and forth is an allegory for the changing seasons; when Prosperine is with her mother, the earth warms and provides bountiful harvests. Upon her annual return to the underworld, however, the earth once again becomes cold and barren. After returning to France after years of training in Rome, François Girardon quickly rose to become one of the greatest artists in France. He was elected a member of the Académie Royale de Peinture et de Sculpture in 1657 and would become Chancellor of the Royal Academy in 1695. The artist was approached frequently for royal commissions and Girardon’s Pluto was originally commissioned by Louis XIV for the gardens at his Palace of Versailles. It was one of four monumental marble groups intended to decorate the corners of Charles Le Brun’s never completed garden at the chateau, the Parterre d’Eau. Each group of three figures symbolized one of the four elements: earth, air, fire and water. Pluto’s association with hell made him the apt...

After Michel Anguier French 1612-1686 Amphitrite Bronze This remarkable bronze masterpiece was cast after a High Baroque masterwork by French sculptor Michel Anguier. After traini...

Angelo Basso (Italy, 1943 – 2011) Evolution Signed and marked IX / XXXIII Beauty & Mythology Collection Sculpture 23″ inches tall (Base 5″ Siren 18″) Box size 20″ x 17″ x 27″ ...

Angelo Basso (Italy, 1943 – 2011) Gabriella  Dimensions 17.0" W x 18.0" H x 7.0" D This sculpture was cast in the Dyansen Studios Foundry in 1991 under...

Angelo Basso (Italy, 1943 – 2011) Siren Signed and marked AP Foundry Mark FAA Beauty & Mythology Collection Sculpture 23″ inches tall (Base 5″ Siren 18″) Box size 20″ x 17″ x 27...

A rare example of late Renaissance sculpture, this impressive Italian bronze captures one of the greatest divine heroes of myth and legend: Hercules. The figure is rendered with stun...

The small bronze depicts a small seated faun, immortalized while playing a wind instrument as can be clearly seen by the puffy cheeks. is signed at the base R. Castagnino and is from...

Mercury, circa 1700s. Bronze with green patina. Height with base: 58 cm (22 7/8 in.)

Gilded bronze sculpture - Mars, god of War. Rome, 17th century. 9 x 9 x h 31 cm. Entirely in cast, chiseled and gilded bronze, resting on an ebonized wooden pedestal decorated with...