16th Century Decorative Objects

In the heart of ancient China, within the resplendent Ming dynasty, a masterpiece was cast in bronze, a testament to a culture steeped in mysticism and spirituality. This Taoist bron...

16th century Castilian gold-leaf gilded painted wood sculpture of Saint Roch, where the quality shows in the exceptional realistic skin tone. He is represen...

Mechelen dolls are rare wooden devotional figurines (mainly walnut was used), which were made by some members of the Guild of Saint Luke. The figures, all individual saints, were made from reference models using highly regulated carving and polychrome techniques. They had to meet several requirements. The shape of the rug had to meet certain criteria and the letter M (from Mechelen) had to be visible in the shape. These devotional or saint figurines...

This is an antique ceramic jar, commonly known as a “Luzon Jar,” made sometime between the 15th and 18th centuries. It is believed to have been produced in southern China and then us...

16th Century Spanish Moorish bronze mortar A small round bronze dark brown patinated shaped mortar, resting on a round base. The exterior decorated with vertical rib pattern from t...

16th century Italian carved and polychromed figure of a male saint or prophet with a wonderful presence. Shown holding an open book in his right hand with flames at his feet, mid-16t...

It is "Echizen ware". Echizen is a historic kiln located in Ishikawa Prefecture, Japan. It is said to have originated around the 9th century. There are 6 kilns with a long history in...

Rare Venetian 16th century Italian traveling jewelry chest profusely decorated in Arabesque black and gilt decoration featuring rare specimen stone drawer fronts in a Palladian archi...

16th century Chinese Ming Dynasty set of three hand painted plates on stands. Plate sizes. 7 x. 14.5 7. x. 14. 7. x. 13.5 Stands measure. 5. x. 3. and. 4. x. 3

This is black glazed pottery made in Korea from around the 15th to 16th century. This era in Korea is called the Joseon Dynasty. This black glazed pottery was only produced for a sho...

Exceptional polychrome wood low-relief depicting a werewolf and saint george after a woodcut by lucas cranach (“DER WERWOLF” 1512) Provenance : collection Brimo de Laroussihle colle...

This is a small black-glazed jar made in Korea between the 15th and 16th centuries. White porcelain is famous in Korea, but this was a type of porcelain that was only allowed to be u...

400-500 old Burmese sandstone "Holy Cow" sculpture with beautifully detailed carvings. Very decorative with natural patina. Mounted on a base of light sandst...

This is a terracotta olive jar from central Spain. It has a wonderful aged patina with chalky painted finish. It makes a great statement as a sculpture in a room on a pedestal, alone...

Formerly known as the "Master of Magione", Nero Alberti da Sansepolcro established a workshop around Perugia in the mid 16th century specializing in the production of devotional imag...

A lovely carved sandstone torso of the Buddha, Ayutthaya period (1350-1767), Thailand. Wonderfully simplistic, the only ornamentation this torso displays...

Inkwell Calamelli workshop (attr.). Faenza, second half of the 16th century Height 4.33 in; length 8.07 in; depth 2.95 in (11 cm; 20.5 cm; 7.5 cm) Weight: 0.800 lb (363 g) State of conservation: some chipping to the top of the mask around the mouth. Handle glued, without any restorations; minor chips in some raised areas. This object has the shape of a foot wearing Greek-style footwear, as can be seen in some raised areas. The foot is anatomically modeled with bare toes, while the ankle is partially covered by the footwear. On the heel, there is a small circular handle to support the object. The mouth of the container is shaped like a mask. The interior, completely enameled, suggests that the piece was intended to be used as an inkwell or to contain some other liquid. The base, however, is not enamelled. The painted decoration, scant and brief, consists of rapid cobalt blue shading between the toes of the foot, with more precise emphasis on the nails. It is accompanied by yellow citrine accents to enhance the forms. The mask is painted with the tip of the brush, to accentuate the tense nature of the eyes and to accentuate their outline. Thin strokes of yellow-orange line the interior of the mouth. Since the Renaissance, this decoration has been referred to as "compendiaria" and it characterizes the period of production extending from the mid-16th century to approximately the middle of the following century. It significantly influenced tastes at the time. It evolved from the polychrome style "istoriato" and transformed into a new style that "summarized" (compendia), or condensed, the ornamentation of the works into a few colors, placing greater prominence on the shapes. It was often inspired by metal specimens. Since the Renaissance, this decoration has been referred to as "compendiaria" and it characterizes the period of production extending from the mid-16th century to approximately the middle of the following century. It significantly influenced tastes at the time. It evolved from the polychrome style "istoriato" and transformed into a new style that "summarized" (compendia), or condensed, the ornamentation of the works into a few colors, placing greater prominence on the shapes. It was often inspired by metal specimens. This artwork finds parallels in similar objects all characterized by this refined style and produced in the city of Faenza and other Italian centers starting from the mid-16th century. The closest comparable example in majolica is a foot acquired by the British Museum in 2011 (inv. 2011, 8008.1). This was previously published by Carmen Ravanelli Guidotti in 1996 and later by Dora Thornton in 2016 during the conference on Renaissance ceramics...

It is "Echizen ware". Echizen is a historic kiln located in Ishikawa Prefecture, Japan. It is said to have originated around the 9th century. There are 6 kilns with a long history in...

A rare and very fine bronze corpus of Christ after a model by Michelangelo, cast ca. 1597-1600 by Juan Bautista Franconio and painted in 1600 by Francisco Pacheco in Seville, Spain. The present corpus reproduces a model attributed to Michelangelo. The best known example, lesser in quality, is one on display at the Metropolitan Museum of Art (MET). The association of this corpus with Michelangelo was first brought to light by Manuel Gomez-Moreno (1930-33) who studied the wider circulated casts identified throughout Spain. The attribution to Michelangelo was subsequently followed by John Goldsmith-Phillips (1937) of the MET and again by Michelangelo expert, Charles de Tolnay (1960). While Michelangelo is best known for his monumental works, there are four documented crucifixes he made. The best known example is the large-scale wooden crucifix for the Church of Santa Maria del Santo Spirito in Florence, made in 1492 as a gift for the Prior, Giovanni di Lap Bicchiellini, for allowing him to study the anatomy of corpses at the hospital there. In 1562, Michelangelo wrote two letters to his nephew, Lionardo, indicating his intention to carve a wooden crucifix for him. In 1563 a letter between Lionardo and the Italian sculptor Tiberio Calcagni, mentions this same crucifix (a sketch of a corpus on the verso of a sheet depicting Michelangelo’s designs for St. Peter’s Basillica [Palais des Beaux-Arts in Lille] may reproduce this). That Michelangelo was working on small corpora in the last years of his life is further evidenced by the small (26.5 cm) unfinished wooden crucifix located at the Casa Buonarroti, considered his last known sculptural undertaking. Michelangelo’s contemporary biographer, Giorgio Vasari additionally cites that Michelangelo, in his later years, made a small crucifix for his friend, Menighella, as a gift. Surviving sketches also indicate Michelangelo’s study of this subject throughout his career, most notably during the end of his life but also during the 1530s-40s as he deepened his spiritual roots. The occasional cameo of crucified Christ’s throughout his sketched oeuvre have made it challenging for scholars to link such sketches to any documented commissions of importance. All the while, in consideration that such objects were made as gifts, it is unlikely they should be linked with commissions. Nonetheless, a number of theories concerning Michelangelo’s sketches of Christ crucified have been proposed and some may regard the origin of the present sculpture. It has been suggested that the corpus could have its impetus with Michelangelo’s work on the Medici Chapel, whose exclusive design was given to the master. It is sensible smaller details, like an altar cross, could have fallen under his responsibility (see for example British Museum, Inv. 1859,0625.552). Others have noted the possibility of an unrealized large marble Crucifixion group which never came to fruition but whose marble blocks had been measured according to a sheet at the Casa Buonarroti. A unique suggestion is that Michelangelo could have made the crucifix for Vittoria Colonna, of whom he was exceedingly fond and with whom he exchanged gifts along with mutual spiritual proclivities. In particular, Vittoria had an interest in the life of St. Bridget, whose vision of Christ closely resembles our sculpture, most notably with Christ’s proper-left leg and foot crossed over his right, an iconography that is incredibly scarce for crucifixes. The suggestion could add sense to Benedetto Varchi’s comment that Michelangelo made a sculpted “nude Christ…he gave to the most divine Marchesa of Pescara (Vittoria Colonna).” Of that same period, two sketches can be visually linked to our sculpture. Tolnay relates it to a sketch of a Crucified Christ at the Teylers Museum (Inv. A034) of which Paul Joannides comments on its quality as suggestive of preparations for a sculptural work. Joannides also calls attention to a related drawing attributed to Raffaello da Montelupo copying what is believed to be a lost sketch by Michelangelo. Its relationship with our sculpture is apparent. Montelupo, a pupil of Michelangelo’s, returned to Rome to serve him in 1541, assisting with the continued work on the tomb of Pope Julius II, suggesting again an origin for the corpus ca. 1540. The earliest firm date that can be given to the present corpus is 1574 where it appears as a rather crudely conceived Crucifixion panel, flanked by two mourners in low-relief and integrally cast for use as the bronze tabernacle door to a ciborium now located at the Church of San Lorenzo in Padula. Etched in wax residue on the back of the door is the date, 27 January 1574, indicating the corpus would have at least been available as a model by late 1573. The Padula tabernacle was completed by Michelangelo’s assistant, Jacopo del Duca and likely has its origins with Michelangelo’s uncompleted tabernacle for the Basilica of St. Mary of the Angels in Rome. The impetus for the Padula tabernacle’s Crucifixion panel begins with a series of late Crucifixion sketches by Michelangelo, depicting a scene of Christ crucified and flanked by two mourners (see British Museum Inv. 1895.0915.510; Ashmolean Museum Inv. 1846.89, KP II 343 recto; Windsor Castle RCIN 912761 recto; and Louvre Inv. 700). A faintly traced block possibly intended for sculpting the sketch of the crucified Christ on its recto was discovered by Tolnay on a version of the composition at Windsor Castle. The Windsor sketch and those related to it appear to have served as preparatory designs for what was probably intended to become the Basilica of St. Mary’s tabernacle door. Vasari documents that the project was to be designed by Michelangelo and cast by his assistant, Jacopo del Duca. Michelangelo died before the commission was complete, though on 15 March 1565, Jacopo writes to Michelangelo’s nephew stating, “I have started making the bronze tabernacle, depending on the model of his that was in Rome, already almost half complete.” Various circumstances interrupted the completion of the tabernacle, though its concept is later revitalized by Jacopo during preparations to sell a tabernacle, after Michelangelo’s designs, to Spain for Madrid’s El Escorial almost a decade later. The El Escorial tabernacle likewise encountered problems and was aborted but Jacopo successfully sold it shortly thereafter to the Carthusians of Padula. An etched date, 30 May 1572, along the base of the Padula tabernacle indicates its framework was already cast by then. A 1573 summary of the tabernacle also describes the original format for the door and relief panels, intended to be square in dimension. However, a last minute decision to heighten them was abruptly made during Jacopo’s negotiations to sell the tabernacle to King Phillip II of Spain. Shortly thereafter the commission was aborted. Philippe Malgouyres notes that the Padula tabernacle’s final state is a mixed product of the original design intended for Spain’s El Escorial, recycling various parts that had already been cast and adding new quickly finished elements for its sale to Padula, explaining its unusually discordant quality, particularly as concerns the crudeness of the door and relief panels which were clearly made later (by January 1574). Apart from his own admission in letters to Spain, it is apparent, however, that Jacopo relied upon his deceased master’s designs while hastily realizing the Padula panels. If Michelangelo had already earlier conceived a crucifix model, and Jacopo had access to that model, its logical he could have hastily employed it for incorporation on the door panel to the tabernacle. It is worth noting some modifications he made to the model, extending Christ’s arms further up in order to fit them into the scale of the panel and further lowering his chin to his chest in order to instill physiognomic congruence. A crude panel of the Deposition also follows after Michelangelo’s late sketches and is likewise known by examples thought to be modifications by Jacopo based upon Michelangelo’s initial sculptural conception (see Malgouyres: La Deposition du Christ de Jacopo del Duca, chef-d’oeuvre posthume de Michel-Ange). Jacopo’s appropriation of an original model by Michelangelo for more than one relief on the Padula tabernacle adds further indication that the crucifix was not an object unique to Jacopo’s hand, as few scholars have posited, but rather belongs to Michelangelo’s original...

It is a very old pot in Japan. This is a pottery called Tokoname ware. Tokoname is a kiln in Aichi prefecture, Japan. (The part marked with a red circle on the map is the Tokoname ki...

A magnificent antique fall-front box with scarce Medieval period bronze lockplate and hasp attributed to Jacopo and Lodovico del Duca. Featuring an important Lockplate and Hasp designed circa 1570, exact date of manufacture unknown, attributed to the late 16th century Roman foundry of Jacopo 1520-1604) and Ludovico (1551-1601) del Duca, with no apparent signatures or hallmarks which is typical of the era, but we did not remove it and inspect the back. Boxes such as this hand various uses but were frequently used by merchants as a writing box - slope during travel and trade, as a small coffer - strong box for storing important documents, money and valuables, as well as a jewelry casket. This hand-crafted European drop-front box dates to the late 19th century, signed L'PUPLET, adorned with a significantly older Italian fine quality cast bronze lockplate with intricate Renaissance era reliefs, including figures, coat-of-arms, and elongated hasp, mounted on a chest of drawers form solid wooden case, wrapped in exotic Japanesque embossed and gilded metallic paper, having a locking fall-front panel with original key included, opening to reveal three interior drawers, all lined in red velvet. circa 1875 The visually striking textured wallpaper covering the box's exterior displays bamboo, birds, and flowers in the oriental Japanesque taste popular in Europe in the 1860s and 1870s following the forced reopening of foreign trade with Japan in 1858 and the ensuing Japonisme craze. To the interior of the fall front panel is a gilt circular stamp with the somewhat obscured name of the workshop or store (likely) "L'PUPLET" and the city "Burxelles" which is in Brussels, indicating the box was likely made or retailed there. Marks to box: L'PUPLET, BRUXELLES Inscription: 13, 14, 15 (Interior drawers inscribed on the verso of their backboards in script from top to bottom, respectively) Provenance / Acquisition: The origin of the elaborate lockplate with hasp on the front of the piece is more intriguing. At least 76 lockplates of this design have been recorded in major museums, private collections, and in the antiques trade across the Western World. For example, lockplates of this pattern are in the collections of the Rijksmuseum in Amsterdam, the State Museum of Prussian Cultural Heritage in Berlin, the Museum Cicico in Bologna, The Museum of Fine Arts in Boston, the Dallas Museum of Art in Texas, the Victoria & Albert Museum in London, the Museo di Palazzo Venezia in Rome, the State Hermitage Museum in St. Petersburg, and the National Gallery of Art in Washington, DC.[1] Specialists in Renaissance bronzes, especially Charles Avery...

A wonderful 16th century draped female torso in classical style. Made in France under Italian Renaissance influence this female torso is finely sculpted with great detail to the stol...

16th Century Spanish Terracotta Vase Hand made marks around the vase.

A small and charming fragmentary cast bronze Buddha head with traces of gilding and lacquer, Lan Na Kingdom, Chiang Saen style, 16th century, Thailand. ...

Great pair of very old wrought iron candleholders. Unique pieces, Spain circa 1500-1700. Weathered. H:68-78cm W:19-23cm

An absolutely stunning Tokoname ware stoneware vase/jar/vessel - produced sometime during the late Muromachi period (1336-1573 to early Edo Period (1603-1867). Tokoname-yaki ware is ...

A lovely northern Thai cast bronze seated meditating Buddha statue with shell inlaid eyes, style of Wat Chedi Luang, Lan Na Kingdom, region of Chiang Mai, 15th-16th century.  The statue of the historical Buddha, Shakyamuni, is portrayed in dhyanasana, seated upon a double lotus pedestal atop a raised platform. His legs in virasana, the half lotus position, hands in dhyana mudra, the gesture of meditation. The Buddha's face is youthful and pleasant, reminiscent of faces of contemporaneous Sukhothai Buddha...

Beautiful weathered oak winged angel head Renaissance ornament. France, 16/ 17th century. Weathered Measurements include the wooden pedestal.

A fine and unusual Japanese black lacquer and mother of pearl inlaid box, Momoyama Period, 16th century, Japan. The large box and cover featu...

A Pair of 16th Century Oak Saints: One being a male depicted wearing a long hooded cloak held together with a brooch over a flowing tunic tied at the ...

This is an antique ceramic jar, commonly known as a “Luzon Jar,” made sometime between the 15th and 18th centuries. It is believed to have been produced in southern China and then us...

A very nicely decorated Ming period Swatow or Zhangzhou porcelain dish with Chilong These small dishes would have been used for the Japanese tea ceremony meal, the Kaiseki. Kaiseki...

16th Century Spanish Terracotta Vase Hand made marks around the vase.

Beautiful weathered oak panel with an wonderful primitive angel figure. On the bottom of this angel you can also see two small eagle heads. France, circa 1550-1650, weathered, small...

Paolo di Giovanni Sogliani (Florence 1455-1522) Processional Cross Florence, around 1515 Enameled, chiseled, engraved, stippled, and gilded copper; wooden core ; Inscription: "OPA...

A petite Chinese Ming dynasty green glazed terracotta court official figurine from the 15th or 16th century, with original polychromy. Attracting our eye with its vibrant polychromy,...

French Bronze Sculpture of Youth Wrangling a Horse by Guillaume Coustou (1677-1746). Best known for his monumental statues of horses, Coustou was the royal sculptor for Louis XIV an...

Set of two 16th century oak panels, one representing a character accompanied by a dog, the other a character in flames, probably saints. These ...

This rare and extraordinary 16th-century French sculpture depicts the iconic Pietà, showcasing exceptional craftsmanship and emotional depth. Finely carved from wood and adorned with...

A Very Large Virgin and Child in walnut wood, carved in the round, trampling on Eve biting into the apple. The theme of the Virgin and Child is the most represented in all Christian...

This large terracotta pignata pot with half glaze, hand-thrown in Cutrofiano-Lucugnano, Puglia, dates from the late 1800s to early 1900s and exemplifies the essence of "ceramica rust...

Oak sculpture of Saint Anne, 16th century. Large oak sculpture of Saint Anne. Work from the Upper Rhine, Basel region. First third of the 16th century. An arm is missing from the i...

This rare Venetian frame entirely carved in high-relief shows a rich decor of scrolls, garlands, daisy flowers and thistles. At the four corners of the frame are depicted large acant...

These beautiful wall candle holders come from a private castle that was decorated in the style of the Gdansk Baroque. The candlesticks were bought in the 1960s in a Gdansk candlestic...

An exceptional Indo-Portuguese colonial mother-of-pearl veneered casket with silver mounts India, Gujarat, 2nd half of the 16th century, the silver mounts Goa or probably Lisbon Measures: H. 16 x W. 24.6 x D. 16.1 cm An exceptional Gujarati casket with a rectangular box and truncated pyramidal lid (with slopes on each side and a flat top) made from exotic wood, probably teak (Tectona grandis), covered with a mother-of-pearl mosaic. The tesserae, cut from the shell of the green turban sea snail (Turbo marmoratus, a marine gastropod) in the shape of fish scales, are pinned to the wooden structure with silver ball-headed nails. The casket is set on bracket feet on the corners. The masterfully engraved decoration of the silver mounts follows the most refined and erudite Mannerist repertoire of rinceaux and ferroneries dating from the mid-16th century. The high quality and refinement of the silver mounts and, likewise, the silver nails that replaced the original brass pins used to hold the mother-of-pearl tesserae in place indicate the work of a silversmith probably working in Lisbon in the second half of the 16th century. The Indian origin of this production, namely from Cambay (Khambhat) and Surat in the present state of Gujarat in north India, is, as for the last three decades, consensual and fully demonstrated, not only by documentary and literary evidence - such as descriptions, travelogues and contemporary archival documentation - but also by the survival in situ of 16th-century wooden structures covered in mother-of-pearl tesserae. A fine example is a canopy decorating the tomb (dargah) of the Sufi saint, Sheik Salim Chisti (1478-1572) in Fatehpur Sikri in Agra district in the state of Uttar Pradesh, north India. This is an artistic production, geometric in character and Islamic in nature, where usually the mother-of-pearl tesserae form complex designs of fish scales or, similar to the dishes also made using the same technique, with the thin brass sheets and pins, stylized lotus flowers. The truncated pyramidal shape corresponds, like their contemporary tortoiseshell counterparts also made in Gujarat, to a piece of furniture used in the Indian subcontinent within the Islamic world prior to the arrival of the first Portuguese. This shape, in fact, is very old and peculiar to East-Asian caskets, chests or boxes used to contain and protect Buddhist texts, the sutras. A similar chest is the famous and large reliquary chest from Lisbon cathedral that once contained the relics of the city's patron saint, Saint Vincent. Both match in shape, having the same kind of socle or pedestal and bracket feet, and in their engraved silver mountings, featuring the same type of refined, erudite decoration. Their differences lie in the silver borders that frame the entire length of the edges of the chest (both the box and the lid), pinned with silver nails, and on the lock plate, shaped like a coat of arms in the Lisbon example. Given the exceptional dimensions of the reliquary casket...

Antique Chinese cloisonne on copper arrow vase, possibly Ming Dynasty 16th century. Bottle form with pair of "arrow" tubes on either side of ...

A very nicely decorated and highly unusual dish from the 15th/16th century. The dish is beautifully designed with a beautiful fish in the centre. 9-1-23-1-1 Additional information:...

16th Century French oil jug found in a dive port in Nice with prolonged sea water exposure.

Large and very nice Blue and White Charger/Dish from the Jiajin/Wanli Period. Additional information: Material: Porcelain & Pottery Region of Origin: China Emperor: Wanli (1572-1620...

This is an exceptional and historic pair of Damascus enameled metalwork vessels or urns. These art objects show signs of rough use and handling through the centuries. Although it is ...

A small Thai cast seated bronze figure of the historical Buddha Shakyamuni, Northern Thailand, Ayutthaya period, 16th century. This sculpture captures the m...

Very rare Ming dynasty porcelain ewer with ottoman gem-set tombak mounts Chinese and Turkish, 16th/17th century Measures: Tombak: height 20cm,...

15-16th century sandstone sculpture depicting Prince Siddhartha's (Buddha) horse, 'Kanthaka', during The Great Renunciation. Indra leads the horse, four yakshas bear his feet, Channa holds firmly by the tail. The Great Renunciation or Great Departure is the traditional term for the departure of Gautama Buddha from his palace at Kapilavastu to live a life as an ascetic. From Buddha pagoda / temple in Arakan, Burma, 1400-1500. Untouched and in original condition with stunning patina. Mounted on light sandstone plinth...

Mortars are an ancient culinary tool, described as indispensable to the preparation of food and medicines in texts like the Egyptian Ebers Papyrus, dating from 1550 BC, and the writi...

Carved wooden sculpture of Mary Magdalene, circa 1500. Large limewood sculpture with traces of polychromy representing Mary Magdalene, German work, circa 1500. H: 80cm. W: 35cm, D: ...

A fine fragmentary gilt bronze head of the Buddha, Lan Na Kingdom, Chiang Saen style, 15th-16th century, Northern Thailand. The small head with well ca...

Ming Dynasty (16th century) pottery vase with vivid turquoise glaze, decorated with dragons. The vase is partially moulded, with circular bosses around the mouth rim and a hexagonal ...

400-600 year old sandstone figure of a "Demon" carved in deep relief. In good original condition with a natural age-related patina that emphasizes the figure's age and authenticity. ...

An exceptionally rare antique German Renaissance carving by Stephan Rottaler (1581-1533), Bavaria circa 1500. The carving is by Stephan Rottaler, Landshut, Germany, an architect who ...

This antique ceramic jar or vase is believed to be from the 15th century and is of the Mamluk period. It is made of a sandy earthenware and feature...

Bronze baluster bowl. Antique bronze votive bowl with ten bronze balusters punctuating the outer surface in high relief. Italy 16th century. Dimensions: 5” diameter top x 3.25" H; ...

A very handsome 16th century Vasque or vessel from the Catalan region of Spain. Hand-carved with one whole to a side. An very wonderful piece to serve as a jardinière or planter. Ver...

A very charming 18th century mortar from the Catalan region in Spain. Beautifully carved from stone. A wonderful accessory piece for any kitchen, bathroom, or table top.

Carved wood depicting the resurrection of Christ ORIGIN : SOUTHERN NETHERLANDS, ANTWERP PERIOD : EARLY 16th CENTURY Height : 67.5 cm Len...

A large and heavy (it weighs 109 lbs!) example of a traditional French pharmacy bowl, this bronze mortar with handles is from 1587, as seen on the production date beneath the molded ...

Set of 2 large early 16th century Tuscany vases, Italy. Rare and very large ceramic water vases with a green glaze. These vases were made in Tuscany Italy. Of course hand made and th...

Large and very nice Blue and White Charger/Dish from the Jiajin/Wanli Period. Additional information: Material: Porcelain & Pottery Region of Origin: China Emperor: Wanli (1572-1620...

An outstanding 16th century Italian (Venetian ) solid walnut and partially polychromed frame. Beautifully hand carved birds and flowers, this style was typical for Venetian time of 1...

In the heart of ancient China, within the resplendent Ming dynasty, a masterpiece was cast in bronze, a testament to a culture steeped in mysticism and spirituality. This Taoist bron...

Sea monster Carrara marble mouth fountain Italy, late 16th century It measures 13.8 x 31.5 x 18.9 in (35 x 80 x 48 cm) State of conservation: some small evident gaps and widespread signs of wear due to outdoor exposure. The gray marks crossing it do not come from restoration, but are rather the natural veins of the marble. This work has some morphological characteristics typically associated with the iconography of the sea monster: an elongated muzzle, sharp teeth, protruding eyes, elongated ears, and a coiled serpent's tail. An in-depth series of studies on artistic depictions of the sea monster attempted to verify how this symbol evolved in antiquity in the European and Mediterranean contexts and how it gradually changed its image and function over time. The iconography itself is mutable and imaginative and its history is rich with cultural and artistic exchange, as well as the overlapping of ideas. This occurred so much that it is difficult to accurately pinpoint the "types" that satisfactorily represent its various developments. However, we can try to summarize the main figures, starting from the biblical Leviathan and the marine creature that swallowed Jonah (in the Christian version, this figure was to become a whale or a "big fish", the “ketos mega”, translation of the Hebrew “dag gadol”). Other specimens ranged from the dragons mentioned in the Iliad (which were winged and had legs) to "ketos” (also from Greek mythology), the terrifying being from whose Latinized name (“cetus”) derives the word "cetacean". See J. Boardman, “Very Like a Whale” - Classical Sea Monsters, in Monsters and Demons in the Ancient and Medieval Worlds, in Papers presented in Honor of Edith Porada, Mainz am Rhein 1987, pp. 73-84). In Italy the monster underwent yet further variations: it can be found in Etruscan art on the front of some sarcophagi representing the companion of souls, while among the Romans we find the “Pistrice” (cited by Plinio in Naturalis Historia PLIN., Nat., II 9, 8 and by Virgilio in Eneide: VERG., Aen., III, 427), which appeared in the shape of a stylized hippocampus or a very large monstrous cetacean and evolved into a hideous being with a dragon's head and long webbed fins. During the Middle Ages, the sea monster was the object of new transformations: at this time, it is often winged, the head is stretched like a crocodile, the front legs are often very sharp fins - sometimes real paws - until the image merges with dragons, the typical figures of medieval visionary spirituality widely found throughout Europe (on this topic and much more, see: Baltrušaitis, J., Il Medioevo fantastico. Antichità ed esotismi nell’arte gotica, Gli Adelphi 1997). In Italy during the 15th and 16th centuries, the revival of classicism - representative of the humanistic and Renaissance periods - led to a different reading of these "creatures". Indeed, the sea monster was also to find widespread use as an isolated decorative motif, especially in numerous fountains and sculptures where dolphins or sea monsters were used as a characterizing element linked to water (on this theme see: Chet Van Duzer, Sea Monsters on Medieval and Renaissance Maps, London, The British library, 2013). From the morphological point of view, the "sea monsters" of this period are mostly depicted as hybrid figures, in which the body of a mythological or real being (a hippocampus, a sea snake, a dolphin), is joined to a head with a rather indistinct appearance. It was usually characterized by large upright ears, an elongated snout, sharp teeth and globular, protruding eyes; a complex and indefinite figure, both from the symbolic point of view and from that of its genesis. The work we are examining is placed as a cross between the medieval sea serpent and the Renaissance dolphin, with stylistic features which recall the snake as often used in heraldry (such as the "snake" depicted in the coat of arms of the Visconti - the lords and then dukes of Milan between 1277 and 1447 - and which, for some, may be derived from the representations of the “Pistrice” that swallowed Jonah). In the search for sources, Renaissance cartography and in particular woodcuts should not be neglected. See for example the monsters of Olaus Magnus, from the editions of the “Historia de gentibus septentrionalibus” (“History of the peoples of the north”) and the natural histories of Conrad Gesner, Ulisse...