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Technique: Painted
17th-18th Century Italian Wooden Reliquary Bust of a Madonna
Located in Buisson, FR
Spectacular and very decorative piece. Large carved wooden reliquary bust of a Madonna. Beautiful traces of color. Small losses and without the relics. Silver/silvered central piece ...
Category

17th Century Italian Baroque Antique Painted Sculptures

Materials

Wood

Spanish 18th Century Hand Carved Wooden Baroque Angel
Located in Buisson, FR
Beautiful hand carved Baroque angel. Unique period piece with traces of its old paint . Spain, circa 1750 Weathered. Several small losses and old repair. Measurement here below in...
Category

18th Century Spanish Baroque Antique Painted Sculptures

Materials

Wood

HOLIDAY GIFT - Charming Trio of Midcentury Ceramic Dog Figurines - Hand-Painted
Located in Bochum, NRW
A delightful set of three midcentury ceramic dog figurines, each hand-painted in warm brown and ivory tones with lifelike expressions and poses. This sculptural trio includes: - A r...
Category

Mid-20th Century German Mid-Century Modern Painted Sculptures

Materials

Ceramic, Porcelain

Stunning German Yard or Garden Gnome Statue, Antique Germany 1910s
Located in Nuernberg, DE
A gorgeous character ceramic figural gnome statue. This character statue has been made by a unknown Company in Germany, in the 1910s or older. Absolutely gorgeous item with lots of c...
Category

1910s German Folk Art Vintage Painted Sculptures

Materials

Ceramic

Italian 18th Century Hand Carved Wooden Baroque Angel Fragment
Located in Buisson, FR
Beautiful hand carved Baroque angel fragment. Unique period piece with traces of its old color . Italy, circa 1750 Weathered. small losses. Measurement here below includes the wood...
Category

18th Century Italian Baroque Antique Painted Sculptures

Materials

Wood

Pair of Antique Chinese Han Dynasty Pottery Red Horse Head Funerary Tomb Figures
Located in Forney, TX
A 2000 year old pair of similarly styled antique Chinese pottery horse heads dating to the Han dynasty (206 BC-AD 220) Large authentic painted grey clay terracotta sculptural tomb o...
Category

15th Century and Earlier Chinese Han Antique Painted Sculptures

Materials

Clay, Earthenware

Abstract Head Sculpture by Pietro Cenedella, Italy, 1960s
Located in Brescia, Brescia
An extraordinary marble sculpture by Italian artist Pietro Cenedella, an abstract head-like form balancing between figuration and pure gesture. The piece is entirely carved from Carr...
Category

1970s Italian Mid-Century Modern Vintage Painted Sculptures

Materials

Marble, Carrara Marble

Japanese Fortune Manekineko Lucky Cat Object 1980s Showa
Located in Paris, FR
This is a manekineko cat object. It is made with porcelain and it was made around 1980s in Showa era. Dimensions. 8 x 8.5 x H13 cm The maneki-neko is a common Japanese figurine ...
Category

1980s Japanese Showa Vintage Painted Sculptures

Materials

Porcelain

Tonala Mexico Bird Figurine Folk Art Hand-painted 1960s
Located in Clifton Springs, NY
Charming vintage Tonala pottery bird figurine is decorated with hand-painted decor of white bird in a landscape, framed with abstract bands of deco...
Category

Mid-20th Century Mexican Folk Art Painted Sculptures

Materials

Ceramic, Pottery

Sculptural 17th Century Florence Fragment with a Fossil Shell and Crystals
Located in Dublin, Dalkey
Sculptural 17th century hand-carved Florence Fragment mounted with a fossil shell with barnacles and adorned with crystals. This fragment is from a church in Florence. It was found ...
Category

17th Century Italian Baroque Antique Painted Sculptures

Materials

Rock Crystal

Vintage Italian Porcelain Animal Figurine Rooster Ceramic Cockerel Bird Figure
Located in Wommelgem, VAN
Art Deco mid Century Italian porcelain 2 roosters on a tree trunk Material: Porcelain, Ceramic, Tin glazed Design: In the manner of Cacciapuoti Origin: Italy, first half 20th century...
Category

Mid-20th Century Italian Baroque Painted Sculptures

Materials

Ceramic, Majolica, Porcelain

Italian 18th century baroque Carved Wooden Silvered Panel / Coat Of Arms
Located in Buisson, FR
Amazing baroque panel depicting a crowned reliquary . Beautiful weathered with traces of its original silver, gilding and colour. Italy circa 1750 Weathered, small losses . Measureme...
Category

18th Century Italian Baroque Antique Painted Sculptures

Materials

Wood

Large Tang Dynasty Pottery Painted Lokapalas Sculptures 28 Inches
Located in Dallas, TX
Tang Dynasty Pair of Painted Pottery Lokapalas Tang Dynasty (618-907), Height: 27.25 x 11.5 x 7" each PROVENANCE: Weisbrod Chinese Art, Ltd., New York Condition: Losses and resto...
Category

15th Century and Earlier Chinese Tang Antique Painted Sculptures

Materials

Pottery

1940s Art Déco Glazed Ceramic Ambretta Dancer by S. Vaccetti for Essevi, Italy
Located in North Miami, FL
1940s Art Déco Torino painted and glazed ceramic figurine 'Ambretta Dancer' by Sandro Vaccetti for the firm Essevi, Italy By: Sandro Vaccetti Material: ceramic, paint, enamel, clay ...
Category

1940s Italian Art Deco Vintage Painted Sculptures

Materials

Enamel

Midcentury Big Cheetah Hand Painted Terracotta Ceramic Sculpture, Italy, 1960s
Located in 05-080 Hornowek, PL
Beautiful Cheetah - Italian ceramic, perfect condition, produced in 1960s. We have also another big cats for sale, check our products. Only one unique piece available. Signed "made i...
Category

20th Century Italian Mid-Century Modern Painted Sculptures

Materials

Ceramic, Terracotta

Pichet Espagnol from the Madoura Pottery AR 245 by Pablo Picasso 1954
Located in London, GB
'Pichet Espagnol' ceramic piece from the Madoura Pottery (A.R. 245) by Pablo Picasso (1954). A fired, unglazed ceramic pitcher in the form of a stylise...
Category

1950s French Modern Vintage Painted Sculptures

Materials

Ceramic

Horna
Located in Miami Beach, FL
Inspired by architecture and imagined civilizations, these handmade sculptures evoke strength, stability, and timelessness. Each earthy, one of a kind piece becomes a symbol—a fortre...
Category

2010s Spanish Modern Painted Sculptures

Materials

Ceramic

Horna
Horna
$3,080
Pair Antique German Porcelain Birds Parakeets Cockrels Cockatoo Parrots Karl Ens
Located in Dublin, Ireland
An exceptionally fine quality highly detailed pair of German Karl Ens pottery porcelain Parrots Feathered Figures of quite generous size, late Nineteenth, early Twentieth Century. ...
Category

Early 20th Century German Victorian Painted Sculptures

Materials

Porcelain, Pottery

Egyptian Stone Relief of Man and Wife
Located in London, GB
This painted limestone relief is an exquisite example of New Kingdom relief carving from the apogee of Egyptian artistic production. Carved in raised relief - a labour-intensive tech...
Category

15th Century and Earlier Egyptian Egyptian Antique Painted Sculptures

Materials

Limestone

18th Century Italian Baroque Angel Figure
Located in Buisson, FR
Wonderful angel figure Italy, circa 1750. Weathered , losses Measurement includes the wooden base. Treated against woodworm. H:36cm W:19cm D:19cm
Category

18th Century Italian Baroque Antique Painted Sculptures

Materials

Wood

Pair of 18th Century Italian Dancing Angels with Baroque Pearls on Aragonite
Located in Dublin, Dalkey
Pair of 18th century Italian dancing angels with coordinating baroque pearls on aragonite crystal clusters. The dancing angels are hand-carved wood, polychromed and gilded, original...
Category

18th Century Italian Rococo Antique Painted Sculptures

Materials

Rock Crystal, Gold Leaf

Tom of Finland. Bookend ‘Pekka’
By TASCHEN, Tom of Finland, Duffy London
Located in Los Angeles, CA
Tom of Finland. Bookend ‘Pekka’ Bookend, painted cast resin, height 12.8 in., base 6 x 6 x 0.8 in. Always Ready to Handle the Heaviest Load - Get Your Books Sandwiched and Add Some ...
Category

21st Century and Contemporary Italian Painted Sculptures

Materials

Resin

Pair of Derby Mansion House Dwarf Figures porcelain, 19th Century
Located in Lincoln, Lincolnshire
These are a pair of Derby Porcelain "Mansion House" Dwarfs or "Grotesque Punches" both with incised model numbers and dating to the 19th century. Both figures, male and female are m...
Category

19th Century English Georgian Antique Painted Sculptures

Materials

Porcelain

Monkey Band NINE-Piece Set Porcelain figurines by Sitzendorf , Circa 1910
Located in Lincoln, Lincolnshire
These are a beautiful set of NINE porcelain Monkey Figures or Figurines all playing in a Band made by Sitzendorf, Germany, circa 1910. What makes these figures special is the excell...
Category

Early 20th Century German Baroque Revival Painted Sculptures

Materials

Porcelain

Pair of White Majolica Ceramic Doves, Italy 1960s
Located in Clifton Springs, NY
The vintage porcelain or ceramic dove figurines feature finely detailed bodies, artfully hand painted with light green accents on bright white majolica glaze, creating a reserved, natural color palette of white and tone-on-tone green. The birds are realistically sculpted with wide, flowing tails, standing calmly with their heads slightly turned. They are not mirror images of each other; each presents subtle differences in posture, adding visual interest and another layer of complexity to the set. Highly detailed figurines convey a touch of historical elegance and whimsical charm of traditional Italian country style. Each sculpture is marked with ITALY and model numbers on the inner surfaces. While many Italian artists and studios created their version of dove figurine, most of them are stylistically different from this pair; Bitossi and Zaccagnini birds have more streamlined, Modernist silhouettes, and the doves created for Raymor were less detailed and intentionally less realistic, as well as most often marked with distributor name in writing. We're attributing the pair to Mottahedeh, who sourced Italian majolica in similar style; the pieces will be simply marked ITALY and Mottahedeh will add their paper stickers. As the sculptures are quite old, the stickers often get lost or destroyed. The convenient size and small footprint allows the set to be used in a multiple ways, such as dining room centerpiece, console table accent, shelf or fireplace mantel decoration...
Category

Mid-20th Century Italian Painted Sculptures

Materials

Ceramic, Majolica, Pottery

Fritz Heidenreich Rosenthal Mid-Century Large Pair Porcelain Doves
Located in Bishop s Stortford, Hertfordshire
A stunning and quality pair German Rosenthal mid-century large porcelain doves designed by renowned sculptor Fritz Heidenreich (German, 1895-1966). The ...
Category

Mid-20th Century German Mid-Century Modern Painted Sculptures

Materials

Porcelain

Post Modern Display Mannequin
Located in Riverdale, NY
Post Modern Display Mannequin from a Japanese store formerly located on Madison Ave, NY. Articulated fiberglass mannequin body has screws at join...
Category

1980s Japanese Post-Modern Vintage Painted Sculptures

Materials

Metal

German Lusterweibchen Four-Light Chandelier w. Carved Mermaid Figure and Antlers
Located in Barntrup, DE
This amazing German chandelier features a delicate hand-carved and polychrome hand-painted mythical lady or mermaid with a scaly fishtail. The adorable and handsome lady is holding a cartouche-shaped shield. The light fixture is hung on a chain suspension, mounted on real antlers, and decorated with red and yellow wrought iron...
Category

Early 20th Century German Early Victorian Painted Sculptures

Materials

Metal, Wrought Iron

LLADRO - Vintage Bending Girl Figurine - Matte Finish - Spain - 20th Century
Located in Chatham, ON
LLADRO - Vintage matte finish ceramic figure - bending girl dressed in her nightgown - retired - factory stamp to the base - Spain - mid 20th century. Excellent vintage condition - ...
Category

Mid-20th Century Spanish Mid-Century Modern Painted Sculptures

Materials

Porcelain

Rare Medium Tiger Ceramic Sculpture, Italy, 1960s
Located in 05-080 Hornowek, PL
Italian ceramic, perfect condition, produced in 1960s. We have also another big cats for sale, check our products. Only one unique piece available.
Category

20th Century Italian Mid-Century Modern Painted Sculptures

Materials

Ceramic

John-Paul Philippe Abstract Sculpture on Wood Base
By John-Paul Philippe
Located in Los Angeles, CA
Striking abstract steel sculpture by New York–based artist John-Paul Philippe. Artist signature “JP”—etched into the wood base. Perfect on a desk. Best known for his fluid, organi...
Category

Late 20th Century American Modern Painted Sculptures

Materials

Steel

Pair of Staffordshire Cats Reclining on Cushions, Vintage
Located in Clifton Springs, NY
Vintage pair of Staffordshire cat sculptures feature the right and the left tabby cats (as they will be displayed), reclining on oval cushions whil...
Category

Mid-20th Century Victorian Painted Sculptures

Materials

Ceramic, Pottery

Mid Century Metal Sculpture by Guy Pullen 1973 Signed
Located in San Juan Capistrano, CA
One-of-a-kind metal sculpture from the renowned artist, Guy Pullen. Signed and dated 1973. Written on the sculpture in both black and red are the following lyrics or poem: When all...
Category

1970s American Mid-Century Modern Vintage Painted Sculptures

Materials

Metal

Antique Meissen Porcelain Figurine of a Girl with Flower Basket
Located in Philadelphia, PA
A fine antique German porcelain figurine. By Meissen. In the form of a barefoot young girl in a dirndl dress carrying a wicker basket full of many different flowers. Atop a Rococo-style gilt plinth. Marked to the base with Meissen's blue underglaze crossed swords mark / an impressed 9 / an incised 'No. 5'. Simply a wonderful antique Meissen figurine...
Category

20th Century German Rococo Revival Painted Sculptures

Materials

Porcelain

Royal Copenhagen Four Vintage Danish Porcelain Birds and Squirrel Figures
Located in Bishop s Stortford, Hertfordshire
Four vintage Danish porcelain birds and squirrel figure made by Royal Copenhagen and dating from the 1960's. The figures are well modeled and ...
Category

1960s Danish Modern Vintage Painted Sculptures

Materials

Porcelain

Tom of Finland. Bookend ‘Durk’
Located in Los Angeles, CA
Tom of Finland. Bookend ‘Durk’ Bookend, painted cast resin, height 12.8 in., base 6 x 6 x 0.8 in. Always Ready to Handle the Heaviest Load- Get Your Books Sandwiched and Add Some Pl...
Category

21st Century and Contemporary Italian Painted Sculptures

Materials

Resin

Pair Antique Chinese Stoneware Shar Pei Puppy Figures with Sancai Glaze Ca. 1860
Located in Katonah, NY
This pair of small Chinese stoneware puppy figures, made circa 1860, combines the natural warmth and charm of the Shar Pei with the soft, flowing beauty of sa...
Category

Mid-19th Century Chinese Qing Antique Painted Sculptures

Materials

Stoneware

Very Large Herend Csikós on Horseback Fine Quality Hungarian Porcelain Figurine
Located in Tustin, CA
Finest quality, very large, handmade porcelain sculpture figurine of a "Csikós on Horseback" has been created for Herend by the famous sculptor, Bela Markup and expertly hand-painted...
Category

20th Century Hungarian Other Painted Sculptures

Materials

Porcelain

Alphonse Cytère Rambervilliers French Iridescent Glazed Art Pottery Dog
Located in Bishop s Stortford, Hertfordshire
A stunning French Rambervilliers art pottery figure of a dog by renowned artist Jean-Baptiste Alphonse Cytère and dating from the early 20th century. Alphonse Cytère was a renowned...
Category

Early 20th Century French Art Nouveau Painted Sculptures

Materials

Ceramic

12th Century Rare Romanesque Wood Sculpture of the Virgin Mary
Located in Vero Beach, FL
12th century extremely rare romanesque wood sculpture of the Virgin Mary. Magnificent wood hand carved sculpture of the Virgin Mary holding a book to her chest. It is an extremely rare survivor of the 12th century. The style is European, possibly French or English. This statue is a testimony to beautiful religious art from about 1150. A truly rare Romanesque sculpture...
Category

15th Century and Earlier English Medieval Antique Painted Sculptures

Materials

Stone

Antique Berber Ceramic vessels, Kabylie, Algeria
Located in Point Richmond, CA
Large Kabylie Ceramic Dish Kabylie Berber People Algeria Late 19th to early 20th century Hand molded ceramic, painted designs Diameter: 17" and 17.75" Depth: 2 3/4" and...
Category

Early 20th Century Algerian Tribal Painted Sculptures

Materials

Ceramic

Theodor Karner for Rosenthal Rare Large Dachshund Porcelain Figure
Located in Bishop s Stortford, Hertfordshire
A rare and exceptional German Rosenthal handmade porcelain figure of a Dachshund modelled by Professor Theodor Karner (German, 1884-1966) and dating from around 1937. The dachshund f...
Category

1930s German Art Deco Vintage Painted Sculptures

Materials

Porcelain

Pair of Diminutive Red Staffordshire Spaniels, circa 1860
Located in West Palm Beach, FL
Pair of diminutive red Staffordshire Spaniels, circa 1860, Each one exceptionally painted with expressive faces.
Category

19th Century English High Victorian Antique Painted Sculptures

Materials

Pottery

Rare Vintage Monumental Porcelain Horse Drawn Victorian Carriage centerpiece
Located in Leesburg, VA
Rare Vintage Monumental Porcelain Horse Drawn Victorian Carriage centerpiece group Capodimonte Porcelain, after a model by Giorgio Galletti Naples, Italy; second half of the 20th century Porcelain Approximate size: 37 (w) x 15 (h) x 10 (d) in. This beautiful and elaborately detailed porcelain group features an ornately modeled carriage drawn by four horses. The coach features a driver seated on his perch wearing a tricorn hat and a lovely lady is seated in the coach box wearing a light blue dress with intricate gesticulating openwork porcelain lace...
Category

Late 20th Century Italian Late Victorian Painted Sculptures

Materials

Porcelain

Antique Lifesize Crowned Mother Mary and Child Jesus Gothic Revival Sculpture
Located in Lisse, NL
Hand carved wood antique statue of Mother Mary wearing a Gothic crown. This original and all hand carved sculpture of the mother of all mothers is anothe...
Category

Early 20th Century European Gothic Painted Sculptures

Materials

Wood

Pair Royal Dux Staffordshire Porcelain Birds Parakeets Cockrels Cockatoos
Located in Dublin, Ireland
An exceptionally fine quality highly detailed pair of Royal Dux Czech Republic pottery vivid Majolica Parrot Feathered Figures of quite generous size, Mid Twentieth Century Each ...
Category

Mid-20th Century Czech Victorian Painted Sculptures

Materials

Porcelain, Pottery

Antique Staffordshire Porcelain Leopard Figure Samuel Alcock Co. Circa 1835
Located in Katonah, NY
This antique porcelain figure of a leopard is small but ferocius. It is modeled grappling with a piece of meat in its jaws while recumbent on a rocky base that is picked out in green...
Category

1830s English Antique Painted Sculptures

Materials

Porcelain

Madres
Located in Miami Beach, FL
Inspired by architecture and imagined civilizations, these handmade sculptures evoke strength, stability, and timelessness. Each earthy, one of a kind piece becomes a symbol—a fortre...
Category

2010s Spanish Modern Painted Sculptures

Materials

Ceramic

Madres
Madres
$3,200
Sui or Tang Dynasty Painted Pottery Armored Horse And Rider
Located in Dallas, TX
Sui or Qi Dynasty Painted Pottery Armored Horse and Warrior Sui Dynasty (581-618) Height: 11 Inches x 10.5 Wide x 4.25 Deep Provenance: Weisbrod Chinese Art, Ltd., New York Conditi...
Category

15th Century and Earlier Chinese Tang Antique Painted Sculptures

Materials

Pottery

Stunning Antique Quality Bronze Marble Clock Garniture w. Bald Eagle Sculptures
Located in Lisse, NL
Unique and amazing 19th century mantel clock garniture. If you are looking for a one of a kind and truly spectacular clock to grace your living space then this work of beauty could ...
Category

Late 19th Century French Belle Époque Antique Painted Sculptures

Materials

Marble, Bronze, Enamel

20Thc Original Painted Rooster Doorstop
Located in Los Angeles, CA
This amazing original painted double rooster doorstop is in fine as found condition.Minor paint loss consistent with age and use.
Category

1930s American Adirondack Vintage Painted Sculptures

Materials

Iron

Italian 18th Century Carved Wooden Baroque Arm Of A Saint Figure
Located in Buisson, FR
Amazing 18th century carved wooden Baroque arm of a Saint figure. This piece was once part of a procession Saint figure. The arm is now placed at a wooden base and as visible on the ...
Category

18th Century Italian Baroque Antique Painted Sculptures

Materials

Wood

18th Century Italian Gilded Tabernacle with a Hand-Carved Chalice Fragment
Located in Dublin, Dalkey
18th century Italian gilded and hand-carved tabernacle adorned with an 18th century Italian gilt chalice and Sabina Faye Braxton gaufrage fabric. This tabernacle once belonged in a h...
Category

18th Century Italian Rococo Antique Painted Sculptures

Materials

Gold Leaf

Mexican Dia De Los Muertos Day of the Dead La Catrina Folk Art Figure Sculpture
Located in Studio City, CA
A quite wonderful Mexican Day of the Dead (Dia De Los Muertos festival held throughout Mexico) La Catrina symbolic skeleton figure. La Catrina is the festival’s most recognizable image/figure. She is the model of a high-society woman who has met Death, her maker. She represents something between the fear induced by her skeletal form and the revelry exhibited by the comical way she is typically portrayed, making her a perfect symbol of the Mexican holiday. She often appears in paintings, window displays, and costumes all around Mexico during the Day of the Dead festivities. La Catrina was originally conceived in the early 1900s by newspaper illustrator and printmaker José Guadalupe Posada...
Category

20th Century Mexican Folk Art Painted Sculptures

Materials

Textile, Wood, Paper

Sergio Bustamante Signed Man At Window Ceramic Sculpture
Located in Forney, TX
A scarce vintage ceramic art sculpture by legendary 20th century Mexican artist Sergio Bustamante (b.1949). Fantastical surrealist style hand pa...
Category

20th Century Mexican Post-Modern Painted Sculptures

Materials

Earthenware

Antique German Yard or Garden Gnome Statue with Wheelbarrow, 1910s or older
Located in Nuernberg, DE
A gorgeous character ceramic figural gnome statue - attributed to Griebel in Germany, a well known manufacturer of this kind of figures. This character statue has been made in German...
Category

1910s German Mid-Century Modern Vintage Painted Sculptures

Materials

Earthenware, Wood

Danish Dog Sculpture
Located in Paris, FR
Sculpture Danish dog In hand painted ceramic.
Category

21st Century and Contemporary Italian Painted Sculptures

Materials

Ceramic

Rare and important painted bronze Crucifix after a model by Michelangelo
By Michelangelo Buonarroti
Located in Leesburg, VA
A rare and very fine bronze corpus of Christ after a model by Michelangelo, cast ca. 1597-1600 by Juan Bautista Franconio and painted in 1600 by Francisco Pacheco in Seville, Spain. The present corpus reproduces a model attributed to Michelangelo. The best known example, lesser in quality, is one on display at the Metropolitan Museum of Art (MET). The association of this corpus with Michelangelo was first brought to light by Manuel Gomez-Moreno (1930-33) who studied the wider circulated casts identified throughout Spain. The attribution to Michelangelo was subsequently followed by John Goldsmith-Phillips (1937) of the MET and again by Michelangelo expert, Charles de Tolnay (1960). While Michelangelo is best known for his monumental works, there are four documented crucifixes he made. The best known example is the large-scale wooden crucifix for the Church of Santa Maria del Santo Spirito in Florence, made in 1492 as a gift for the Prior, Giovanni di Lap Bicchiellini, for allowing him to study the anatomy of corpses at the hospital there. In 1562, Michelangelo wrote two letters to his nephew, Lionardo, indicating his intention to carve a wooden crucifix for him. In 1563 a letter between Lionardo and the Italian sculptor Tiberio Calcagni, mentions this same crucifix (a sketch of a corpus on the verso of a sheet depicting Michelangelo’s designs for St. Peter’s Basillica [Palais des Beaux-Arts in Lille] may reproduce this). That Michelangelo was working on small corpora in the last years of his life is further evidenced by the small (26.5 cm) unfinished wooden crucifix located at the Casa Buonarroti, considered his last known sculptural undertaking. Michelangelo’s contemporary biographer, Giorgio Vasari additionally cites that Michelangelo, in his later years, made a small crucifix for his friend, Menighella, as a gift. Surviving sketches also indicate Michelangelo’s study of this subject throughout his career, most notably during the end of his life but also during the 1530s-40s as he deepened his spiritual roots. The occasional cameo of crucified Christ’s throughout his sketched oeuvre have made it challenging for scholars to link such sketches to any documented commissions of importance. All the while, in consideration that such objects were made as gifts, it is unlikely they should be linked with commissions. Nonetheless, a number of theories concerning Michelangelo’s sketches of Christ crucified have been proposed and some may regard the origin of the present sculpture. It has been suggested that the corpus could have its impetus with Michelangelo’s work on the Medici Chapel, whose exclusive design was given to the master. It is sensible smaller details, like an altar cross, could have fallen under his responsibility (see for example British Museum, Inv. 1859,0625.552). Others have noted the possibility of an unrealized large marble Crucifixion group which never came to fruition but whose marble blocks had been measured according to a sheet at the Casa Buonarroti. A unique suggestion is that Michelangelo could have made the crucifix for Vittoria Colonna, of whom he was exceedingly fond and with whom he exchanged gifts along with mutual spiritual proclivities. In particular, Vittoria had an interest in the life of St. Bridget, whose vision of Christ closely resembles our sculpture, most notably with Christ’s proper-left leg and foot crossed over his right, an iconography that is incredibly scarce for crucifixes. The suggestion could add sense to Benedetto Varchi’s comment that Michelangelo made a sculpted “nude Christ…he gave to the most divine Marchesa of Pescara (Vittoria Colonna).” Of that same period, two sketches can be visually linked to our sculpture. Tolnay relates it to a sketch of a Crucified Christ at the Teylers Museum (Inv. A034) of which Paul Joannides comments on its quality as suggestive of preparations for a sculptural work. Joannides also calls attention to a related drawing attributed to Raffaello da Montelupo copying what is believed to be a lost sketch by Michelangelo. Its relationship with our sculpture is apparent. Montelupo, a pupil of Michelangelo’s, returned to Rome to serve him in 1541, assisting with the continued work on the tomb of Pope Julius II, suggesting again an origin for the corpus ca. 1540. The earliest firm date that can be given to the present corpus is 1574 where it appears as a rather crudely conceived Crucifixion panel, flanked by two mourners in low-relief and integrally cast for use as the bronze tabernacle door to a ciborium now located at the Church of San Lorenzo in Padula. Etched in wax residue on the back of the door is the date, 27 January 1574, indicating the corpus would have at least been available as a model by late 1573. The Padula tabernacle was completed by Michelangelo’s assistant, Jacopo del Duca and likely has its origins with Michelangelo’s uncompleted tabernacle for the Basilica of St. Mary of the Angels in Rome. The impetus for the Padula tabernacle’s Crucifixion panel begins with a series of late Crucifixion sketches by Michelangelo, depicting a scene of Christ crucified and flanked by two mourners (see British Museum Inv. 1895.0915.510; Ashmolean Museum Inv. 1846.89, KP II 343 recto; Windsor Castle RCIN 912761 recto; and Louvre Inv. 700). A faintly traced block possibly intended for sculpting the sketch of the crucified Christ on its recto was discovered by Tolnay on a version of the composition at Windsor Castle. The Windsor sketch and those related to it appear to have served as preparatory designs for what was probably intended to become the Basilica of St. Mary’s tabernacle door. Vasari documents that the project was to be designed by Michelangelo and cast by his assistant, Jacopo del Duca. Michelangelo died before the commission was complete, though on 15 March 1565, Jacopo writes to Michelangelo’s nephew stating, “I have started making the bronze tabernacle, depending on the model of his that was in Rome, already almost half complete.” Various circumstances interrupted the completion of the tabernacle, though its concept is later revitalized by Jacopo during preparations to sell a tabernacle, after Michelangelo’s designs, to Spain for Madrid’s El Escorial almost a decade later. The El Escorial tabernacle likewise encountered problems and was aborted but Jacopo successfully sold it shortly thereafter to the Carthusians of Padula. An etched date, 30 May 1572, along the base of the Padula tabernacle indicates its framework was already cast by then. A 1573 summary of the tabernacle also describes the original format for the door and relief panels, intended to be square in dimension. However, a last minute decision to heighten them was abruptly made during Jacopo’s negotiations to sell the tabernacle to King Phillip II of Spain. Shortly thereafter the commission was aborted. Philippe Malgouyres notes that the Padula tabernacle’s final state is a mixed product of the original design intended for Spain’s El Escorial, recycling various parts that had already been cast and adding new quickly finished elements for its sale to Padula, explaining its unusually discordant quality, particularly as concerns the crudeness of the door and relief panels which were clearly made later (by January 1574). Apart from his own admission in letters to Spain, it is apparent, however, that Jacopo relied upon his deceased master’s designs while hastily realizing the Padula panels. If Michelangelo had already earlier conceived a crucifix model, and Jacopo had access to that model, its logical he could have hastily employed it for incorporation on the door panel to the tabernacle. It is worth noting some modifications he made to the model, extending Christ’s arms further up in order to fit them into the scale of the panel and further lowering his chin to his chest in order to instill physiognomic congruence. A crude panel of the Deposition also follows after Michelangelo’s late sketches and is likewise known by examples thought to be modifications by Jacopo based upon Michelangelo’s initial sculptural conception (see Malgouyres: La Deposition du Christ de Jacopo del Duca, chef-d’oeuvre posthume de Michel-Ange). Jacopo’s appropriation of an original model by Michelangelo for more than one relief on the Padula tabernacle adds further indication that the crucifix was not an object unique to Jacopo’s hand, as few scholars have posited, but rather belongs to Michelangelo’s original...
Category

16th Century Renaissance Antique Painted Sculptures

Materials

Bronze

Sculptural 18th Century Italian Figure of Christ on Red and White Crystal Quartz
Located in Dublin, Dalkey
Sculptural 18th century Italian figure of Christ and metal sword with large red and white crystal quartz clusters and phantom quartz. The figure of Christ was originally part of a c...
Category

18th Century Italian Rococo Antique Painted Sculptures

Materials

Crystal, Rock Crystal, Metal

STELIO MOLA - Hand Painted Majolica Sardinian Figure - Italy - Mid 20th Century
By Mola
Located in Chatham, ON
STELIO MOLA - Vintage hand painted majolica figure of a Sardinian gentleman - medium size - featuring elaborate hand crafted and hand painted details throughout - signed on the base ...
Category

Mid-20th Century Italian Folk Art Painted Sculptures

Materials

Ceramic

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