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Small carved wooden figurehead depicting young Moretto Venice late 19th century

About the Item

Small carved wooden figurehead depicting young Moretto, mounted on red marble base, late 19th-century Venetian manufacture. This is a beautifully crafted sculpture made of polychrome poplar wood that shows traces of gilding, depicting a young African man dressed as a sailor wearing a red blouse with short sleeves and fastened with a button at chest level. In her left hand she clutches a rose, her legs are tapered to simulate those of a mermaid, and her terminal hoof is covered with leaves and flowers. This sculpture belongs to late 19th-century Venetian production, evocative of the Venetian Republic's colonial past, and almost certainly never sailed. The history of the Moors originates in the Middle Ages, passing through the 18th century, during the height of the splendor of the power of the wealthy maritime republic, to the 19th century where the Moor figure becomes a decorative motif in many areas of art, especially in sculpture, resulting in true masterpieces of tradition. Good state of preservation, signs of restoration to the arms at the junction with the shoulder and some lack in the fingers of both hands. Height 79 cm- inches 31, width 23 cm- inches 9, depth 23 cm- inches 9. A figurehead is a wooden decoration found on the bows of ships from the 16th to the 19th century. The practice was first introduced in galleons, but even older ships often had some decoration in the bow. Like many of the austere decorations of the time, figureheads were intended to indicate the name of the ship that housed them to people who could not read; they were also meant to show the wealth and strength of the shipowner. During the Baroque period some ships boasted gigantic figureheads, weighing many tons and sometimes even carrying two, one on each side of the foremast. The large figureheads, being carved into solid wood and being placed at the tip of the hull, adversely affected the ships' seaworthiness. This, and the high cost of making them, led to much smaller figureheads being made in the 18th century and even eliminated in the following century. After the Napoleonic Wars, a few figureheads began to be produced again, but they depicted only small half-busts and not the large figures used in the past. Clippers of the 1850s and 1860s were generally equipped with full-length figureheads, but these were relatively small and light. La polena in quanto tale morì con la fine dell'utilizzo della propulsione a vela in larga scala. I primi piroscafi avevano delle strutture che ricordavano le polene sulla loro prua. This practice lasted until World War I.

Dimensions:
Height: 31 in (78.74 cm)Width: 9 in (22.86 cm)Depth: 9 in (22.86 cm)
Materials and Techniques:
Wood
Period:
1890-1899
Date of Manufacture:
1890
Condition:
Wear consistent with age and use.
Seller Location:
Milan, IT
Reference Number:
1stDibs: LU1020239770532

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