Carrara Marble Sculptures

Great female statue of Judith in bronze with brown patina and white marble from Carrara. This young woman holds in her hands, stretched over his head, a scimitar in its scabbard, re...

Sculpture, Male torso, classical art, Greek art, Torso, white Carrara marble, classical sculpture, ancient torso, Gaddi torso Sculpted male torso on white marble from carrara, origi...

An antique Carrara marble bust of a Roman empress. This bust is a depiction of Roman noblewoman or empress, possibly Livia, wife of the first Roman emperor Augustus. Dating to the ...

This magnificent abstract sculpture, crafted from White Carrara marble, is a masterpiece by the renowned Italian-American sculptor Arturo Di Modica, famous for the Charging Bull Bron...

Pietro Bazzanti - Barzanti (Italian, 1825-1895) "After the Bath" - a fantastic quality and large carved white Carrara marble figure of a semi-nude young maiden standing by the sea-shore. The smiling and posing young beauty, with bare breasts and back, her right arm juxtaposed over her head, while holding a blanket over her waist with her left hand and standing barefoot by a rocky seawall and wavy shoreline. Signed 'P. Barzanti/Florence' (on reverse) and raised on a cylindrical swiveling carved verde antico solid marble pedestal. circa: Florence, 1880-1890. Pietro Bazzanti or Barzanti (Italian, 1825-1895) was a 19th Century Italian sculptor born in Florence. Together with his brother, Niccolò Bazzanti (Firenze, 1802-1869) who was also a sculptor, they both worked the sprawling Florentine studio 'Pietro Bazzanti e Figlio' a hugely successful sculpture studio, operated within the family at their gallery on Lungarno Corsini until the mid-twentieth century. The studio was a place where many talented professors and apprentice sculptors specialized in sculpting marble...

A 17th century architectural fragment probably part of a sculpted colomn or doorway. With a spiraling bread between two straight angels carved out meticulous and skilfully. As a obje...

This finely executed bust of a Naiad is attributed to the neoclassical sculptor John Gibson (1790 – 1866). A Naiad was a type of mythological water nymph and is depicted here with her head bowed and cocked slightly to the side, displaying her strong neo-Hellenistic profile. In her hair, the nymph wears a headdress that is comprised of long and slender reed leaves, which not only identifies her iconographically as a water spirit, but draws a close comparison with those worn by the female figures in John Gibson’s Hylas Surprised by the Naiades (1827 - 1837) (fig.1). The downwards and off-centre orientation of our Naiad bust mirrors that of the taller figure on the left of the group, who rests her cheek on the head young Hylas (fig.2) Her facial physiognomy follows the neo-Hellenistic archetype established by Gibson and can be closely compared with his Tinted Venus – one of the most important statues of the Victorian era (1851–56, Walker Art Gallery, Liverpool) (fig.3). While Gibson’s Tinted Venus is known best for its controversial polychrome ‘tinting’, the essential structure of the face—broad brow, finely drawn nose, wide (and slightly drooping) almond-shaped eyes - provided a template that Gibson returned to repeatedly in his depiction of mythological maidens. Critics of the time noted the consistency of his female types, with some seeing their idealised severity as an antidote to the sentimentality of much mid-Victorian sculpture (fig.4 – 6). The facial physiognomy is also very similar to a drawing by Gibson at the Royal Academy that depicts Hero weeping over the dead body of Leander (fig.7). The socle style of the present work also finds comparisons with Gibsons busts of Cupid and Aurora. This was of course somewhat standardised, but it is interesting to note the extent of their similarity with our bust. John Gibson RA is considered by many to be the greatest British sculptor of the nineteenth century working in the Neoclassical style. It is hard to overestimate the impact Rome had on the life and art of the artist. He first arrived in the city around 1817, when he was just twenty-six, and remained a resident there until his death. Not only did Rome’s ancient sculptural treasures and architectural fragments offer Gibson a lifetime of inspiration, but the Grand Tourists who poured into Rome in the first half of the nineteenth century provided him with many commercial opportunities. These rich or aristocratic travellers sought out mythological sculptures for their grand, palatial residences. However, since the papal decrees of Doria Pamphilj and Pacca of 1803 banned the export of ancient Greek and Roman works of art from Rome, there was a large demand for modern idealised sculpture in the Neoclassical style (Frasca-Rath 2016, p. 10). During his early days in the city he had the great fortune to train under both Antonio Canova and Bertel Thorvaldsen (Roscoe and Hardy 2009, p. 522). He referred continuously to Canova as his “master”, particularly in his memoirs, which he dictated to Margarete Sandbach at the beginning of the 1850s; these were subsequently published by Lady Eastlake in 1870. Moreover, he claimed to be Canova’s last pupil in a letter to Antonio Gacini, Secretary of the Royal Academy in Milan in 1861, written to thank the Academy for accepting him as an Honorary Member: “The first instruction which I received in my art was from an Italian. It was Canova whose pupil I became in the year 1817 and studied under him for five years when he died. I was his last pupil” (Royal Academy Archive GI/1376). By 1821, Gibson had established his own studio in the via Fontanella, off the via Babuino. From here he aimed to produce sculpture of “the sublime and the purest beauty”, believing that the sculptor’s role was to select and combine the most beautiful parts of nature to create a harmonious whole, which would delight and elevate the viewer. By the mid nineteenth century he was one of the few remaining exponents of the so-called ‘pure’ and ‘neo Hellenistic’ style of sculpture, resolutely upholding the Neoclassical ideals established by Wincklemann, in a period when naturalism and modern subjects preoccupied the majority of artists in Europe (Turner, ed., 1996, p. 598). Gibson was convinced of the importance of disseminating artistic ideas through the younger generations, an ideal no doubt impressed upon him by Canova, and established ‘the British Academy of Arts in Rome’. His students included William Theed (1804–1891), Benjamin Spence (1822–1866), Harriet Hosmer...

A beautiful and very high quality Italian 19th century Neo-Classical st. white Carrara marble statue of Venus de Milo, signed G. Pettini & Figli Pisa. The statue is raised by a wonde...

Carrara marble sculpture signed Luca Madrassi, Paris, circa 1890. Art Nouveau period.

AMAZING and Unique PAIR OF MARBLE FIGURE OF THE MINOTAUR, 17th Century Baroque Style, Italy. Beige/grey marble. Minotaur on a rectangular "Rosso di Verona" base. H (without base) 81...

A large (almost life-sized) antique Carrara marble statue of a Roman legionary. Dressed in typical Roman soldier costume and with sword and shield in ...

Nicely carved head with Turquin blue marble socle. Smooth soft patina to the stone. Turquin marble was used in ancient Rome for flooring , bathtubs etc. It was used often in the Fren...

Italian Carrara Marble Sculpture Signed Comana. This beautifully executed Italian Carrara marble sculpture is mounted on a green marble plinth. Gorgeous!

Carrara marble classical bust of Paris wearing a Phrygian cap after Antonio Canova 1757–1822 One of the great Neoclassical sculptor Canova's most famous...

An Incredible and Quite Impressive Life-Sized 19th Century Italian Carrara Marble Hand-Carved Sculpture by Pasquale Romanelli, "Sulamitide". This marble sculpture titled Sulamitide ...

The perfection in the carving technique makes this sculpture very Special. It is carved from a fine carrara white marble with artistic Perfection. The folds in her gown and drapin...

Description water jet cut, hand-polished nero marquina marble block. made to order in nyc. Dimensions length 18.75? width 7.5? thickness 6.5?.

18th Century Italian Marble Bust of Caesar Augustus. His draped robe is hand-carved in red rosso levanto marble with the face modelled in contrasting white Carrara marble. The piece ...

A Monumental Italian 19th Century Marble Sculpture of "Flora's Embrace", By Professore F. Galli. Flora's Embrace, an exquisite marble sculpture by the esteemed Professore Fortunato G...

An elegant pair of carved marble sphinx sculptures, each resting on a rectangular plinth. The figures combine classical female heads with reclining lion bodies, richly detailed with...

A Very Fine, Large and Charming Italian Late 19th to early 20th-Century Carrara Marble Sculpture Group Titled “The Village Celebration” by Professor Antonio Garella (Italian, 1863-1919). The intricately, impressive and exceptionally carved statuary marble group depicting a joyful dancing and singing group of Italian villagers, in a lively embrace, holding hands and arms. The happy celebratory scene includes a figure playing an accordion, another holding a wicker basket, and a hunter with a rifle slung over his back, accompanied by his hunting dog. The sculpture is elegantly mounted on a swiveling, carved green marble pedestal. Signed: Profre A. Garella – Galleria P. Bazzanti, Firenze. Circa: Florence, 1900. Antonio Giuseppe Garella (1863–1919) was an Italian sculptor renowned for his work in marble, alabaster, and bronze during the late 19th and early 20th centuries. Born in Ferrara (some sources cite Bologna), he trained at the Accademia di Belle Arti in Florence and in Bologna before establishing himself in Florence, where he became a prominent figure in the city’s artistic community. Often referred to as "Professor Antonio Garella," he was closely associated with the Galleria P. Bazzanti, a prestigious hub for sculpture sales and exhibitions. Garella’s career spanned the fin-de-siècle period, blending neoclassical influences with romantic, narrative themes inspired by everyday Italian life and classical antiquity. His sculptures, known for their intricate carving and emotional expressiveness, include lively portrayals, as seen in The Village Celebration. Other notable works include The Love Letter, a white marble figure of a young woman reading, evoking tender emotion; La Notte (The Night), a nude sculpture of a flying maiden above an orb; Diane of Gabii, a life-size marble inspired by classical antiquity; and Apollo and Daphne, a large marble sculpture modeled after Gianlorenzo Bernini’s 17th-century masterpiece in the Borghese Villa, Rome. In Apollo and Daphne, drawn from Ovid’s Metamorphoses, Garella captures the myth of the chaste nymph Daphne, pursued by the young god Apollo, who is bewitched by Cupid to fall in love with her. As Daphne prays to her river-god father to escape Apollo’s advances, she transforms into a laurel tree. Garella, like Bernini, sensitively carves Daphne’s feet and hands morphing into leaves and branches, while Ovid notes that Apollo can still feel her heart beating beneath the bark. Garella’s monumental commissions further highlight his prominence, including a 1904 statue of Garibaldi in Pistoia and two statues, L’Architettura and La Musica, for the Vittorio Emanuele II Monument in Rome. Though not as celebrated as Antonio Canova (1757–1822), Garella significantly contributed to Florence’s marble sculpture tradition, bridging academic styles with emerging 20th-century trends and influencing decorative arts. His masterpieces, often crafted through ateliers like Galleria P. Bazzanti, remain highly valued in European and American private collections, with limited auction records due to their scarcity in the antiques trade market. Related Literature: A. Panzetta, Nuovo dizionario degli scultori italiani, Turin, 2003, vol. I. Museums: • Museo Civico di Prato (Prato Civic Museum) - Prato, Italy Ritratto di Filippino Lippi (Portrait of Filippino Lippi) Bronze and marble bust portraying the Renaissance painter Filippino Lippi (1457–1504), reflecting Garella's skill in portraiture and historical homage. • Fondazione Sgarbi (Sgarbi Foundation; a private cultural institution with museum-like functions, focused on art collections) - Ro Ferrarese, Italy Saffo (Sappho) Polymaterial bust (likely marble and other media) depicting the ancient Greek poet Sappho, emphasizing classical themes. • Muzeum Palac-Herbsta – Łódź, Poland...

GRAND TOUR MODEL OF VENUS DE MILO AFTER ANTIQUITY Italian a late 19th to early 20th century copy of the original of Antiquity carved from a single block of Carrara marble unsigne...

Antonio Tantardini (Italian, 1829-1879) An extraordinary Italian 19th century life-size carved Carrara white marble sculpture of "A Young Child and a baby in a wicker crib...

This is a Marble Bas-Relief of Two Apostles. It depicts a large and heavy uprise white Carrara marble bas-relief/ sculpture of two apostles standing up together. The left one is Sain...

A wonderfully unique Meiji Bronze Wave - the details and techniques are very intricate. There are no missing pieces or damage. the piece is in very...

Finest quality hand-carved 19th century Italian Carrara white marble statue of a boy playing a mandolin, signed A Piazza Carrara, attributed to the Italian master, Antonio Piazza (18...

The organically shaped Ovum basin symbolizes tribute to the perfection within Nature. Although geometrical, the softness of the edges combines with the water surface to create an egg...

Sculpture, Male torso, classical art, Greek art, Torso, white Carrara marble, classical sculpture, ancient torso Male torso carved on beautiful white Carrara marble, original model. ...

Tall, Italian Carrara marble female sculpture on pedestal. Date and signed on the back of the sculpture. The sculpture also swivels. The bottom...

This handsome depiction of a Victorian lady with her Dog is well carved and beautiful on all sides. It comes With a separate base for presentation. It is antique and A fine garden pi...

Late 19th Century Italian Arabesque Style Carrara Marble Sculpture Signed Pugi. Offered is a beautifully executed late 19th century carved Carrara marble seated Arab male on a thick ...

A modernist sculpture by French artist Bertrand Créac’h, hand-carved in Carrara marble, c. 1990s. Tapered and monumental, its angular planes dissolve into softened curves, revealing ...

A striking late 18th-early 19th century bust of the Roman Emperor Titus Domitian. The head is made from hand carved white Carrara marble, the tunic and t...

A beautiful Continental 19th century white Carrara marble statue of Venus after a model by Bertel Thorvaldsen. The striking statue is raised by a circular base where Venus stands nex...

This Carrara marble statue is made by the Belgian artist Jan Keustermans. The sculpture is signed and dated. It is a unique piece. It is the first time that Jan Keustermans and his ...

A finely carved 19th century marble sculpture, Italy, circa 1800, depicting the celebrated antique subject known as the Resting (or Leaning) Satyr, after a type long associated with ...

A 19th century French Sèvres biscuit porcelain figurine of a couple seated in the garden. The gentleman is feeding grapes to the lady, whose l...

Gilt bronze and marble sculpture signed Affortunato Gory. Louis XV style. France, circa 1920. Carrara and Breccia marble.

Antique male marble torso, circa 1850 A copy of the roman marble statue Apoxyomenus in Musei Vaticani in Rome (I sec d.c.) copy of a greek bronze athlete statue...

An impressive pair of monumental carved marble figures in the classical tradition, depicting idealized warrior figures inspired by the art of antiquity, dating to the late 20th centu...

Fine antique (19th century) continental bust of a lovely female in curls and dress adorned with bows at the shoulder. Apparently unsigned.

Sculpture, Female torso, classical art, Greek art, Roman art, Torso, white Carrara marble, classical sculpture, ancient torso, Greek torso, Venus torso Sculpted female torso on whit...

Magnificent "Dorso Masculino" sculpture in Carrara marble from the 20th century. Italy Measures: H. 108cm x 37cm Perfect conditions.

A sensational and monumentally scaled French mid 19th century white Carrara marble statue. The most impressive and statement making statue ...

A Pair of 19th Century Italian Hand-Carved and Hand-Polished Carrara Marble Models of Children Reading and Writing, Signed A. Piazza, After Antonio Canova. Antonio Canova (1757–1822...

Masterfully carved Italian Vanitas bust in solid marble from late 19th century. White Carrara marble skull combined with a red Rosso Imperiale marble Ro...

A very fine Italian 19th century carved Carrara marble figural fountain "Jardinière" modelled as a standing Putto and a Satyr supporting a sea-sh...

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...

A striking sculptural composition by Belgian artist Lode Tibos, created in the nineties. Combining Belgian bluestone, Carrara marble and lead, the work reflects Tibos’ fascination wi...

An Outstanding Pair 19th Century Italian Hand-Carved Carrara Marble Busts of Apollo & Artemis, One Bust is Signed on the Back, "F Vichi". This pair of stunning marble busts, hand-car...

A refined and unique sculpture, crafted from carved wood and gilded with pure gold leaf. It depicts a young man running while holding a blown Murano glass cornucopia, which branches ...

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...

Sculpture called "Pro Ingenio" made by Émile Lois Picault (1833-1915), made of Carrara marble, a gilt bronze harp and ivory laurels. The sculpture represents Jupiter and eagle. Signe...

A very fine copy of the Renaissance sculpture entitled 'A Little Boy'. After Italian Renaissance sculptor Desiderio da Settignano, or Deside...

Small Marble Table Sculpture. Very nice form, no signature or markings. W 6.5 x D 3 x H 5 in

A French Antique Carved Marble Bust of Louis XIV, a masterful embodiment of artistry and historical grandeur. Crafted with precision and reverence, this carved marble bust captures t...

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, ...

An impressive and highly decorative set of four life-size carved marble figures representing the allegorical Four seasons, executed in the classical European tradition and dating to...

Depicting Hannah with draping robes holding Samuel in her left arm and placing a donation in a trunk with an engraved Menorah to its front, signed 'F. Andrei. Inv. E. Scolp. Roma 186...

A spectacular Italian 19th century neo-classical white carrara marble sculpture of Paulina Bonaparte signed by Carlo Fossi. Paulina was...