Gilt Sculptures

Wonderfully ornate gilt gesso over carved wood processional cross, probably northern Italy late 18th century. The large floral wreath with carved gilt ribbons, a small cross to the c...

A Chinese early Qing Dynasty carved and lacquered wood figure of Guanyin, Southern China, 17th/18th century. Guanyin, the Bodhisattva of Compassion and Mercy, is portrayed seated in dhyanasana, one hand raised in viktara mudra, the gesture of teaching and discourse. The great bodhisattva is dressed in heavy, loose robes tied at the chest, with a mantle draped over his shoulders. He looks serenely outwards from heavily lidded eyes. Guanyin's face carved beautifully with somewhat feminine features. A large five pointed crown sits upon his head. The larger leaves of the crown carved with indistinct images of the Buddha. The statue was originally fully lacquered in the deep red gilt lacquer typical of Southern Chinese Buddhist sculpture...

A Fine Pair of French 19th/20th Century Gilt-Bronze Sculptures of "The Marly Horses" (Now turned into lamps) After the original by Guillaume Coustou (French, 1677-1746). The large pair of equestrian bronze sculptures, finished in a gold patina, each depicting rearing horses with their groom, both raised on oval a black slate and Bardiglio marble bases and fitted with modern electrical twin-light brass fittings and cream colored shades. The base on an ebonized wooden platform. Circa: Paris, 1900-1920. Sculpture & Base Height: 31 1/4 inches (79.8 cm) Base Width: 21 3/4 inches (55.3 cm) Base Depth: 12 3/4 inches (32.4 cm) Height to top of (Adjustable) shade fitting: 48 1/4 inches (122.6 cm) Shade Height: 15 inches (38.1 cm) Shade Width: 26 inches (66.1 cm) Shade Depth: 20 inches (50.8 cm) The original Marly Horses are two 1743–1745 Carrara marble sculpted groups by Guillaume Coustou. They were commissioned by Louis XV of France for the trough at the entrance to the grounds of his château de Marly. Coustou's last works, they were intended to replace two other sculpted groups, Mercury on Pegasus and Pegasus, Renown of Horses, both by Antoine Coysevox, which had been removed to the Tuileries Gardens in 1719. Louis XV chose the modellos in 1743 and the full-size sculptures were completed in only two years, being installed at Marly in 1745. They proved highly successful in reproduction, particularly on a smaller scale, and prefigured Théodore Géricault and other Romantic artists' obsession with equestrian subjects. The Marly horses were later also used as the central motif of the monochrome 819-line RTF/ORTF test card which was used on TF1 from 1953 until 1983. The originals were moved to the place de la Concorde in Paris in 1794 and Louis-Denis Caillouette (1790–1868) restored them in 1840. In 1984 it was concluded that the annual military parades on 14 July were damaging the sculptures and they were replaced by marble copies produced by Michel Bourbon in the studio of a subsidiary of Bouygues. The latter also gained the right to an extra copy, which was placed in Bouygues's social building. The original sculptures were moved to a former courtyard in the Richelieu wing of the Louvre Museum, which was renamed the 'cour Marly' in their honour, whilst Bourbon's two main copies were moved to the originals' first site near the trough at Marly, with work overseen by the architect Serge Macel. Guillaume Coustou the Elder (29 November 1677, Lyon – 22 February 1746, Paris) was a French sculptor of the Baroque and Louis XIV style. He was a royal sculptor for Louis XIV and Louis XV and became Director of the Royal Academy of Painting and Sculpture in 1735. He is best known for his monumental statues of horses made for the Chateau of Marly, whose replicas now stand in the Place de la Concorde in Paris. Coustou was a member of a family of famous sculptors; his uncle, Antoine Coysevox, was a royal sculptor; his elder brother, Nicolas Coustou was a sculptor, and his son Guillaume Coustou the Younger also become a noted royal sculptor. Like his older brother, he won the (Prix de Rome) of the Royal Academy which entitled him to study for four years at the French Academy in Rome. However, he refused to accept the discipline of the academy, gave up his studies, set out to make his own career as an artist. He worked for a time in the atelier of the painter Pierre Legros, and eventually returned to Paris. Upon his return to Paris, he assisted his uncle Coysevox in making two monumental equestrian sculptures, Fame and Mercury, for the Château de Marly, the new residence of Louis XIV near the Palace of Versailles, where he went to escape the crowds and ceremony of the Palace. He later (1740–1745), made his own horses, The Horses of Marly, his most famous works, to replace them. The horses reinvent the theme of the colossal Roman marbles of the Horse Tamers in the Piazza Quirinale, Rome. They were commissioned by Louis XV in 1739 and installed in 1745 at the Abreuvoir ("Horse Trough") at Marly. The horses were considered masterpieces of the grace and expressiveness of the French Late Baroque or Rococo style. After the Revolution they were moved from Marly to the beginning of the Champs-Élysées on the Place de la Concorde. The originals were brought indoors for protection at the Louvre Museum in 1984. In 1704 Coustou was received into the Académie royale de peinture et de sculpture. The work he made to mark his entrance was Hercules on the Pyre, now in the Louvre. It displays the special hallmark of the Baroque, a twisting and rising transverse pose, as well as highly skillful carving. He rose to become Director of the academy in 1733. Another of his major works from his later career, the statue of Maria Leszczynska, (1731)is on display at the Louvre. Coustou also created two colossal monuments, The Ocean and the Mediterranean among other sculptures for the park at Marly; the bronze Rhone, which formed part of the statue of Louis XIV at Lyons, and the sculptures at the entrance of the Hôtel des Invalides. Of these latter, the bas-relief representing Louis XIV mounted and accompanied by Justice and Prudence was destroyed during the Revolution, but was restored in 1815 by Pierre Cartellier from Coustou's model; the bronze figures of Mars and Minerva (1733–34), on either side of the doorway, were not interfered with. In 1714 for Marly he collaborated in two marble sculptures representing Apollo Chasing Daphne (both at the Louvre), in which Nicolas Coustou sculpted the Apollo and Guillaume the Daphne. About the same time he was commissioned to produce another running figure in marble, a Hippomenes designed to complement an Atalanta copied from the Antique by Pierre Lepautre...

Art Deco 'Chained Bulldog' Car Mascot / Hood Ornament designed by Marvel, French, 1920´s, silver-Gilt plated bronze, small version, 14cm long, compl...

Pierre Alexandre Schoenewerk (French, 1820-1885) "Erato" Patinated and Gilt Bronze Sculpture, late 19th century, the seated muse with turtle-form lyre, on an oval base, signed, and c...

This striking pair of carved giltwood dolphin figures mounted on clear lucite bases likely began their life as decorative architectural elements—perhaps once adorning a piece of furn...

Large pair of patinated and gilt bronze Atlas figures French, 20th century Figure with globe: Height 135cm, diameter 46cm Figure with armillary sphere:...

Head of a crowned Virgin Lorraine, first half of 14th century. H26 x 14 x 14 cm Provenance : - Private Collection, Paris France (1960) Private Collection Tuscany, Italy (1980) Ex...

A Monumental and Fine Pair of French 19th, 20th Century Empire Style Red Porphyry-Like Granite and Gilt-Bronze (Ormolu) Mounted Obelisks on Four Gilt-Bronze Lion Paws both resting on...

18th century Italian gold leaf angel wing with rutilated quartz crystals on natural-forming aragonite crystal cluster. The hand-carved angel wing was once part of a heavenly, angelic depiction in a historic church in Italy. The aragonite is from Morocco and is known for this particular type of crystalized formations. The mineral emulates a cloud which is compliments the 18th century Italian gilded angel wing. The rutile quartz crystals are adorned on the base and aspects of the wing and the gold of the rutile perfectly matches the original gilded 18th century Italian artifact...

A vintage Northern Thai double ram black painted sculpture from the mid-20th century, with elegant antlers, green glass jewelry motifs and red accents. Found in Northern Thailand, this horizontal sculpture...

Pair of large, majestic temple lions originating from a Buddha temple in Siam (modern-day Thailand). Hand-carved from wood, they retain their original silver gilding, highlighting in...

SUPERB PAIR OF DORÉ AND PATINATED BRONZE SEVEN-LIGHT CANDELABRA WITH PUTTO FIGURALS France, circa 1870-1890 Item # 007LTX30A An incredibly fine pair of ...

Decorative amethyst geode in 22-karat gold leaf Shows a old internal repair not very visible to photograph. Offered at Gallery Girasole.

A wonderfully naturalistic large Japanese Meiji period mixed metal okimono (ornamental sculpture) of a pair of oriental turtle doves ...

18th century Italian gold leaf fragment with a black irradiated crystals on a free-forming obsidian mineral with a polished face. Obsidian is naturally occurring volcanic glass prod...

Decorate a living room, entryway, or chapel corner with this expressive pair of antique Italian wall-hanging cherub sculptures, carved in Italy circa 1860 and finished in richly burn...

Fine quality gilt and silvered bronze bust of Amazonian Queen Penthesilea by Emile Hebert. Original 19th century bronze bust mounted on a period Belgian b...

This is a Set of Gilt Iron Door Knockers. It depicts a pair of large and heavy lion heads with a ring in their mouths. The rings are decorated with some acanthus leaves in the bottom...

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...

Gilt bronze sculpture, onyx base by Joe Descomps, 1900, Art Nouveau. An Art Nouveau sculpture by Joe Descomps of a dancer with a mask, circa 1900, gilt bronze and onyx base. Dimens...

Pair of French gilt wood and gesso decorative carved foliage and gadrooned hanging wall brackets, Early 19th century.

The fine casting and excellent gilding makes this piece Exceptional The sculpture of two neoclassical maidens In draped gowns supporting a center post on a round hardwood Base wit...

German/Rudolstadt-Volkstedt late 19th century figure group of putti made of biscuit porcelain: Four putti on landscape round pedestal around a vase pedestal, in moving posture and different states of mind playing with a goat, a sheep, a boar and a calf. On high rectangular pedestal crater vase with applied flower...

Large quartz crystal, pyrite and vermeil model of an eagle attributed to Asprey Swiss, c. 1975 Height 62cm, width 81cm, depth 48cm Attributed to the celebrated and well-known Asprey...

FIGURE OF A PENITENT SAINT Probably Spanish, circa 1720-50 14" H x 6" D x 5 1/8" W A carved wooden figure of a bearded saint, richly polychromed and gilded in the estofado techniqu...

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

French, late 19th to early 20th century. Pair of gilt bronze cupid mantel statuettes, one with bow drawn and one removing an arrow, on white marble plinths...

A cute pair of late 19th century gilt and Patina bronze chenets / bookends Depicting a dog and cat perched on a pillow, sitting on a bronze base.  This...

A pair of French Early 19th century Louis XV gilt bronze figural Chenets Andirons. The scrolled and pierced body, each surmounted with a figure of a young boy and a young girl, both ...

A Very Fine Pair of French 19th Century Louis XV Style Figural Gilt-Bronze and Silver-Plated Bronze Chenets, each surmounted by a Triton blowing a seashell horn, resting on a pierced...

French figural cherub gilt bronze and marble three piece clock set flanked by gilt bronze marble sphere six light candelabras, central clock fla...

Gilt bronze figure of the dancing Faun of Pompeii Marble base After the antique Neapolitan Early 20th century.

A weathervane in the form of a running horse, that was likely modeled after "Dexter" circa late 19th century on a custom display stand. The full body molded horse has a gilt surface with verdigris patina. Not entirely sure of the maker but possible by L. W. Cushing & Co. In Waltham or Harris. Co in Boston. The surface has been re-gilt historically likely dated from early 20th century. A lovely piece that transcends American fold art...

This elegant gilt bronze (ormolu) fireplace fender was created in France in the late 19th century. The item will add splendour and beauty to a fireplace, making it the focal point of a room. The fender features a pierced rail which is decorated with a central cartouche, flanked by stylized acanthus leaves. The ends of the fender are topped by full-length, semi-nude figures. These include a beautiful young woman and a bearded male, holding a blacksmith’s hammer. The latter can be identified as Hephaestus (or Vulcan), the classical god...

A pair of mounted porcelain Karp shaped vases. Gilt - Bronze Mounted Blue Enameled Stoneware, Chinese 18th Century, the Mounts are Louis XV, Circa 1750...

A finely carved Chinese zitan wood figure of an unidentified bodhisattva, possibly Guanyin, late Qing Dynasty, circa 1900, China. The androgynous figure has a plump, almost matronly face, with downcast eyes and a gentle smile. The hair in long tresses, gathered and tied in a high chignon. The enlightened being is portrayed seated in dhyanasana, bare feet resting on crossed legs, both soles pointing up. Thick robes billow and drape around the full figured body. The hands display...

A fabulous Art Deco cold painted gilt and silver bronze figure of a beautiful young woman reclining on a bed of wheat sheaves exhibiting rich colour and very fine hand chased surface...

Exquisite pair of late 18th Century Italian Roman bath ornaments. In Alabastro Bianco with silver gilt lion masks and paw feet. On Rosso Antico and Porta Santa Rossa marble. Circa 1790.

Intricate French gilt bronze work depicting lovebirds sharing a worm above a pearl egg nest upon a tree, while a cobra nestles at the tree base. The work is ...

Mathurin Moreau (French, 1822-1912) rare gilt and silvered bronze of a young maiden seated on a rock with three birds, conceived 1898. The semi clad figure seated on a rustic outcro...

After Clodion (Claude Michel, French, 1738-1814) Figural Group Patinated and Gilt Bronze Sculpture, 19th century, depicting two cherubs playing with a goat, on a white marble base, u...

Pair of rare 18th century temple elephants carved in sandstone with chalk and leftovers of gold leaf. Chalking is used as a surface to bind gold leaf. Originally fully covered with g...

Large Antique 19th Century Bronze Native American Warrior Sculpture Henri Plé French, 1885 Height 111 cm, width 54 cm, depth 30 cm This dramatic bronze by Henri-Honoré Plé captures ...

Dancer with tambourine, gilded bronze sculpture from the Art Deco period, circa 1930. An Art Deco gilt bronze sculpture of a dancer with tambourine, on a green marble base, circa 19...

Two Asian gilt bronze Teppanom kneeling Thai sacred angels. Bronze gilded temple guardians in a sitting position. These temple guardians were made in Th...

A Monumental French 19th Century Patinated and Parcel Gilt Cast-Iron Bust of 'Head from a Statue of Antinous as Dionysus' Wearing a Wreath of Ivy ...

A wonderful pair of gilt bronze figures, each signed “Lalouette” on base by French sculptor Auguste Louis Lalouette (1826-1883) on red marble plinths, and stamped “Tiffany & Co”. The...

Gerda Gerdago's 'Cosmic Dance': Art Déco austrian patinated bronze chryselephantine (ivory and gold) sculpture manufactured by Arthur Rubinstein By: Gerda Gerdago Material: bronze, ...

René Saint-Marceaux (1845 - 1915 France), antique gilded French bronze bust. Inscribed "E.Polo" and dated 1897. This small gilded bronze is a bust of a child signed D. St. Rene. Mark...

A Large and Impressive Continental 19th Century Patinated Bronze and Giltwood Carved Crucifix Former property of Siegfried & Roy, the renown German...

Beautiful weathered giltwood winged angel head, France, circa 1750 Weathered and small losses. Measurements include the wooden base. H:20cm W:17cm D:7cm

Bring devotional beauty to a mantel, console, or chapel corner with this graceful antique sculpture of the Virgin Mary, carved in the Pyrenees of France circa 1860. Hand-carved in wo...

A delightful Art Nouveau early 20th Century gilt bronze figure of a very beautiful young lady holding a flower in her right hand, the surface of the bronze exhibiting fine detail and...

Beautifully sculpted by Tore Strindberg, one of Sweden's leading sculptors in the early 20th century, and sensitively cast and gilded by the Otto Meyers fou...

An excellent pair of opposing dore bronze Furietti Centaur reductions of those that were excavated at Hadrian’s Villa in Tivoli in 1735. The models are named after Giuseppe Furie...

‘Open Sesame’ A Finely Cast Gilt and Patinated Bronze Concealed Erotic Figure Of A Young Woman in A Cloak, by Carl Kauba. This rare gilt and patinated bronze by Carl Kauba is finel...

This striking and unusual piece showcases a large, natural sea fan meticulously mounted on an impressive 19th-century gilt sailor’s pricket, standing an impressive 62" tall. The pric...

A Pair of Grand Tour Period 18th C. Italian Roman Busts of Emperors Domitian and Nerva. These busts depict the Roman Emperors Domitian and Nerva, and demonstrate finely cast and han...

Art Deco Rare Porcelain Figurine, designed by Theodor Degenring for the Porzellanfabrik Günthersfeld AG, Gehren, Germany 1930s. Rare find, this piece was made of porcelain trimmed in...