Carrara Marble Animal Sculptures

Fine quality antique carved marble recumbent lions after models by Antonio Canova. Architectural elements most likely part of a larger el...

"Nudo di donna" beautiful sculpture depicting a stylized woman's body, in white Carrara marble with pink shades. The artwork, characterized by curved volumes on a geometric support in grey marble. Manufacture of the Italian master Vittorio Gentile in 60s, signed lower side. VITTORIO GENTILE (1939 - 2022) Born in 1939, he was interested in the transformation of stone and form since he was a child. At 25 he established himself as a point of reference for a genre sculpture based on research, on morphoglobalism. He understood the sphere as an expansive figure and achieved important successes in Rome and the United States. It is the years of famous sculptures such as "Il Ratto", "Il Torso" that place him among the great contemporary interpreters. A success that will continue in the 80s and 90s and which will culminate in the great exhibition at the Vittoriano in 2003. Vittorio Gentile's forms have an organic genesis. They chase tensions and movements of bodies, abstractions, robust surfaces of shoulders, buttocks, torsos. The monument to Giovanni Falcone...

A lovely welded brass sculpture of a bird. The bird is mounted on a cylinder of Marble. The entire feeling that emits from this piece is wonderful - creative, with brass plumbs and...

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...

Amazing and rare set of three Carrara white marble sculptures. Fratelli Mannelli designed this fantastic set in Italy during the 1970s. There are three elements in this set: an elephant, a giraffe and a camel. This set is extremely rare because of the material. For this set high-quality white Carrara marble was used, while normally, the Mannelli sculptures were made in travertine marble. A wonderful set of sculptures...

A late 19th Century, antique Italian horse head sculpture with harness and mane in a classic style. This statuette was carved by hand in Carrara Marble. It has its’ original antique ...

Pair of Art Deco inspired solid brass crane sculptures surmounted on dark grey Carrara marble pedestals with brass sabots. One sculpture stands 2...

Italian gilt bronze sculpture of an eagle on a rectangular white Carrera piece of marble. The high quality of the gilt work and the early age makes the eagl...

Sculpture, high relief, bas-relief, ancient Roman bust, Roman art, high relief battle, classical art, Greek art, bust, white Carrara marble, classical sculpture, carved high relief, ...

A very fine and charming Italian 19th century carved Carrara Marble Group "Playful Putti with Goat" depicting two young children, one riding the goat whose two front legs are in the ...

A very fine Italian 19th century Carrara marble life-size marble sculpture of "Hebe and The Eagle"; depicting a young maiden seated on a rocky outcrop holding an urn over her shoulder and serving water from a bowl to a thirsty eagle, raised on a circular base by Aristide Fontana (Italian 19th Century - Active 1870-1890), Carrara, Inscribed to the reverse; "Aristide Fontana Sc./Carrara", circa 1870-1880. Hebe, the Greek goddess of youth, was the daughter of Zeus and Hera and was the hand-maiden and cup bearer of the gods and the symbol of youthful beauty and chastity. She is often depicted as a temptress tantalizing the eagle of Jupiter with a cup of ambrosia and her body. In her role as cup-bearer she offered nectar and ambrosia and here she holds the cup before the eagle, Zeus' messenger. This sculpture subject matter resembles Bertel Thorwaldsen's, marble sculpture of Ganymede and the Eagle, circa 1817 and currently at the Chrysler Museum, Norfolk, VA. The most notable difference between both sculptures is that, unlike in Thorwaldsen's work, this sculpture depicts a figure of a young semi-nude maiden bearing a pearl necklace centered with a charm engraved with the letter "S". This sculpture subject matter can also be attributed to Psyche, perched on a Stygian rock and threatened by dragons, is rescued from her task by Jupiter's eagle, who brings her a lekythos filled with the river's water. Although Apuleius' story of Cupid and Psyche had been a common theme in European art since the Renaissance, the particular incident of Psyche rescued by Jupiter's eagle was seldom illustrated. Comparable to themes in mythology, Old Testament figures and heroines in particular were popular subjects of artworks in the mid-19th century. Several scenes from the Biblical (Gen. 24) story of Rebecca's meeting with Eliezer, and subsequent marriage to Isaac, were depicted in the 19th century. The most frequent representation shows Rebecca at the well with a pitcher. Other examples of the subject include those by the Italians Cesare Lapini, Giovanni Battista Lombardi and Domenico Menconi and American sculptors Brown, Mozier, and Chauncey Bradley Ives...

Carrara marble sculpture "Ariadne on the Panther" signed A. Frilli, Firenze, Italy, circa 1890. Dimensions green marble pedestal: 114 cm.

Horses, horse sculpture, marble horses, high relief horses, running horses, Italian art horses, made in Italy, bas-relief horses, high relief horse. High relief representing a group ...

Rabbit- is part of our marble animal family made in Carrara/ Italy. If placing it alone or with a companion, it is definitely an eye-catcher! Its special material, Paonazzo Marble, ...

A Fine Late 19th Century Italian White Carrara Marble of a Child and Dog A young child sitting and training their dog, on top of a rouge marble base. ...

1980's Mid-Century Modern abstract carved marble owl sculpture with black base, in vintage original condition with some wear and patina to the mar...

A charming true pair of Italian 18th century white carrara marble statuettes of lions. Each statue is raised by an oval terr...

Pair of figural bronze paperweights over cararra marble bases. circa early 19th century; models of "Il Porcellino" and "Wounded Stag" Item # C104009 A superb pair of 19th century p...

Duck- is part of our marble animal family made in Carrara/ Italy. If placing it alone or with a companion, it is definitely an eye-catcher! Its special material, Paonazzo Marble, di...

An enchanting early 19th century marble group of a seated child playing with a Greyhound puppy. After; Joseph Gott (1785–1860) was a 19th century English ...

We are delighted to offer for sale this stunning pair of original Italian Carrara marble chess piece horse knight lamps They are in absolutely stunning ...

Magnificent hand carved Carrara marble sculpture of a lioness head from Rome. Mounted on a metal base. Base 13.75"W x 12.25"D.

Pair of beautifully sculpted, left-and right, Italian, Carrara marble, seated hounds on bases of the same.