Acroterion Desk Accessories

Achitectural Model of the Temple of Saturn Roman Forum Bronze and Marble Grand Tour 9 x 8 x 3.3 cm Base: 1.2 cm

Grand Tour Roman Temple Souvenir – A Timeless Masterpiece in Blackened Wood. Transport yourself to the grandeur of classical antiquity with this exquisite Grand Tour Roman Temple So...

We are delighted to offer for sale this extremely rare original Victorian Staunton chess set with fine Italian marble giltwood chessboard A trul...

The round paperweight framed in black marble, with porphyry and sienna marble and other marble specimens. The center in sienna marble with carved bea...

Marquette of the temple of Castor and Pollux Bronze with marble base 19th century 13.2 x 7.2 x 2.7 cm Base: 1.2 cm high

Italian Grand Tour model of the ancient Temple of Vespasian located in the Roman Forum, Rome. Carved from alabaster, this is a handsome example of a souvenir carving which would have been collected by a European or American sophisticate making a Grand Tour of the ancient sites of Italy. This wonderful architectural miniature is evocative of another time and place. Roma Templo Di Vespasiano' etched into the black marble base. It has been drilled to be wired, not the first time I have owned one of these that had been mounted as a lamp. The Temple of Vespasian and Titus is located in Rome at the western end of the Roman Forum between the Temple of Concordia and the Temple of Saturn...

Miniature Wunderkammer Grand Tour architectural model, entirely handmade, in balsa wood and brass, depicting the Tower of Pisa. The bells made of brass are inserted in the final part...

We are delighted to offer for sale this extremely collectable original Victorian Marble Grand Tour Roman Ruin statue of columns A wonderful original piece, this is a desk sized co...

The profile of Caesar in profile in high relief. The yellow marble base with stepped edges.

This is a superb decorative antique Italian Grand Tour marble Pietra Dura mounted desk paperweight, circa 1880 in date. This splendid rectangular paperweight is exquisitely inlai...

This is a superb decorative antique Italian Grand Tour marble Pietra Dura mounted desk paperweight, circa 1880 in date. This splendid rectangular paperweight is exquisitely inlaid with a sumptuous arrangement of semi-precious stones including malachite, agate, onyx and amethyst. It is beautifully inlaid on a slate base. Not only is this desk paperweight very functional, but it is also an exquisite mineralogical wonder that can be admired by all discerning collectors. Condition: In excellent condition, please see photos for confirmation, Dimensions in cm: Height 2 x Width 17 x Depth 10 Dimensions in inches: Height 1 inch x width 7 inches x depth 4 inches. Pietra dura is a term for the inlay technique of using cut and fitted, highly polished coloured stones to create images. It is considered a decorative art. Pietre dure is an Italian plural meaning "hard rocks" or hardstones; the singular pietra dura is also encountered in Italian. In Italian, but not in English, the term embraces all gem engraving and hardstone carving, which is the artistic carving of three-dimensional objects in semi-precious stone, normally from a single piece, for example in Chinese jade. The traditional convention in English has been to use the singular pietra dura just to denote multi-colored inlay work. However, in recent years there has been a trend to use pietre dure as a term for the same thing, but not for all of the techniques it covers, in Italian. But the title of a 2008 exhibition at the Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York, Art of the Royal Court: Treasures in Pietre Dure from the Palaces of Europe used the full Italian sense of the term, probably because they thought that it had greater brand recognition. The material on the website speaks of objects such as a vase in lapis lazuli as being examples of "hardstone carving (pietre dure)" The Victoria & Albert Museum in London uses both versions on its website, but uses pietra dura. "A method of inlaying coloured marbles or semi-precious stones into a stone base, often in geometric or flower patterns...." Giovanni Montelatici...

The 7 1/4" ruler with 8 different specimens inset with in a black marble frame.