Renaissance Sculptures

An Impressive White Statuary Marble Figural Group of Apollo and Daphne After The Celebrated Model by Gian Lorenzo Bernini (1598–1680) at the Galleria Borghese in Rome, On Dove Grey Marble Pedestal. Sculpted in the round from a single block of white statuary marble. The male figure of Apollo captured as if in motion, running forward with his weight balanced on his right leg, his robe billowing behind. He leans forward encircling with his left arm the goddess Daphne and at that very moment she transforms into a laurel tree. The statue stands atop an original solid dove grey marble pedestal with rotating mechanism. Bernini’s depiction of the transformation myth of Apollo and Daphne is a sculptural masterpiece of pure virtuosity. Bernini pushes to the limit the plastic possibility of sculpted marble to freezeframe the moment when the goddess Daphne transforms into a laurel tree to escape Apollo. Just as Apollo thinks he has caught her, Daphne’s fleeing form begins to be enveloped by the encircling bark; her fingers leaf out; her toes take root. Apollo encircles her waist with a confident arm; but his facial expression indicates the beginning of an awareness that something has gone wrong. Daphne seems ignorant of her transformation as she looks back over her shoulder, lips parted in fright. Her mouth seems to frame a silent scream as her face goes blank under the force of transformation. Daphne’s hair swings around as a result of her sudden arrest and blows free with a lightness Bernini himself felt he never equalled. The story of Apollo and Daphne originates in Greek mythology, but the most well-known version is the lyrical telling by the Roman poet Ovid in his Metamorphoses (I.438-567), a collection of Greek fables first written in 8 CE. The myth purportedly explains the origin of the laurel tree and its connection to Apollo. He says he will wear her leaves in his hair, will use her wood to make a bow and lyre and that a crown made of her branches will adorn the heads of royalty and campions of game and battle. Apollo uses his powers of eternal youth and immortality to render the laurel tree an evergreen. The subject of Apollo and Daphne is common in paintings but rare in sculpture for the obvious reason that neither hot pursuit nor transformation from flesh to vegetation seemed remotely suited to three-dimensional treatment. However, Bernini triumphs in his handling of such a challenging subject, creating an hallucinatory effect whereby the figures appear to almost skim over the ground. Bernini’s statue of Apollo and Daphne was commissioned by Cardinal Borghese (1577-1633) and begun in 1622 but not completed until 1625 owning to an interluded during which Bernini sculpted his statue of ‘David’. Cardinal Borghese was secretary to his uncle Pope Paul V and in the classic pattern of papal nepotism wielded enormous power as the effective head of the Vatican government. Cardinal Borghese as an art collector was patron of the painter Caravaggio and the artist Bernini. As was the practice, Bernini did not execute the sculpture entirely by his own hand, but with help from his workshop. The finer details that show Daphne’s conversion from human to tree, such as the twigs and leaves springing from her hands, were undertaken by Bernini’s pupil Giuliano Finelli (1601–1653). Apollo and Daphne is still in situ in the Galleria Borghese in the room for which is was made, although today it is positioned at the centre of the room instead of closer to the wall and facing a doorway as originally intended. Bernini’s statue of Apollo and Daphne was immediately acclaimed as a masterpiece for revealing his outstanding talent and innovative spirit, especially the ability to portray both actions and emotions. Appreciation for Apollo and Daphne continued, with a French traveller in 1839 complimenting it as "astonishing both for mechanism of art and elaborateness, and full of charm in the ensemble and the details” (A. Valery, Historical, Literary, and Artistic Travels in Italy: A Complete and Methodical Guide for Travellers and Artists. Baudry. 1839 p. 596). More recently, the historian Robert Torsten Petersson called it “an extraordinary masterpiece ... suffused with an energy that works out of the tips of the laurel leaves and Apollo's hand and drapery” (R.-T. Petersson, Bernini and the Excesses of Art, Fordham Univ Press, 2002, p.80). The fame of Apollo and Daphne made it a must see for visiting Grand Tourists during the 18th and 19th centuries and the wealthiest could commission a replica. Fulfilling this demand in the late 19th century were the workshops of Roman sculptor such as Raffaello Romanelli, Ernesto Gazzeri...

This marble figure of a sleeping child was crafted around 1800 in the style of François Duquesnoy, a sculptor active in Italy in the early 17th Century....

Large French patinated bronze sculpture of David by Mercié and Barbedienne French, circa 1878 Measures: Height 77cm, width 36cm, depth 27cm...

Life-size marble sculpture of Spring by Antonio Frilli Italian, late 19th century Height 159cm, width 47cm, depth 40cm This superb sculpture is the work of Antonio Frilli, a renowned Italian artist active in the late 19th century, who founded the Frilli gallery...

These two busts, monumental in both their size and artistry, come from the renowned Italian majolica workshop of the famed Angelo Minghetti. Depicted are the Renaissance political an...

Pair of Italian Renaissance style (19th Century) carved oak large angels with guitars.  

Pair of Italian Renaissance style (17/18th Century) walnut and gilt trimmed large crouching figures with musical instruments on pedestal bases (PRICED AS PAIR).  

French bisque porcelain portrait bust in the Renaissance manner. French, 19th Century Measures: height 65 cm, width 40 cm, depth 22 cm. Th...

French painted bisque porcelain bust of a woman French, 19th century Measures: Height 68cm, width 40cm, depth 30cm This fine bust is crafted from painted bisque porcelain. The bust depicts a young woman in a historicised Renaissance style: the sitter tilts her head to her left, her eyes glancing to something in the distance. She wears an ornate feathered head...

Pair of patinated bronze figures after Giambologna French, late 19th Century Mercury: Height 84cm, width 17cm, depth 31cm Fortuna: Height 84.5cm, width 17cm, depth 29cm The patinated bronze figures are pictured in the nude, adopting active poses. Both stand on their tiptoes on one foot — Fortuna resting on a scrolling base, and Mercury on a gust of wind, produced by Zephyrus, the god of the western wind — and their other leg is flicked back. In both, one arm is raised, and the other rests at their side. The figures stand on cylindrical yellow marble bases, which are ringed with continuous relief panels, depicting cherubs at the helm of sailing ships, and navigating using globes...

Four antique bronze plaques depicting water-nymphs, by Ferdinand Barbedienne French, 19th century. Measures: Height 47cm, width 12cm, depth 2.5cm Finely cast in relief from patinated bronze with parcel gilt patina, these French 19th Century panels each depict a Classical female water-nymph. The relief structure and design is after four panels from the important marble fountain from the Renaissance period in Paris called the Fontaine des Innocents. This was created by the French sculptor Jean Goujon...

Pair of patinated bronze sculptures after Giambologna French, late 19th century Measures: Mercury height 86cm, width 19cm, depth 27cm Fortuna height 83cm, width 18cm, depth 28cm ...

Pair of bronze sculptures of Mercury and Fortuna French, late 19th century Measures: Mercury: Height 64cm, width 11cm, depth 27cm Fortuna: Heigh...

4 Italian Renaissance style (19th Century) carved soapstone wall plaques of Medieval scenes under glass in black frames.

Pair of Italian Renaissance style silver plate bronze figure of horse walking (from a series of 1,000 titled: "Cavalli di San Marco II", signed by LUDOVICO De LUIGI, 1979).  

Pair of Italian Renaissance style green patinated bronze figure of horse walking (from a series of 1,000 titled: "Cavalli di San Marco II", signed by L...

Awe-inspiring in size and artistry, these incredible Venetian figural torchères pay homage to two of Italy’s most celebrated merchant explorers–Marco...

This charming set of three antique German plaques are each cast from high quality 19th century iron, meaning that the detailing on them is of a very hig...

Set of 3 Italian Renaissance style (19th Cent) stripped large figures/statues playing musical instruments

This beautiful sculpture of a mother and child was created in circa 1900 by the French sculptor, Vincent Desire Faure de Brousse. Faure de Brousse was...

Italian Renaissance painted pine lifesize figure of religious scholar holding book,17th or 18th century.  

Pair of Italian Renaissance (19th century) small gilt bronze lions on a pale green rectangular marble plinths.

This compelling, small scale bronze sculpture depicts ‘The Rape of the Sabines’, after a monumental work by the Renaissance artist, Giambologna (152...