F.L. Kenett, Rare 1950s British B&W Photograph of African Queen Sculpture

Italian, circa 1890, After the Antique Bronzed and painted plaster 47.5 cm. / 18.75 ins high This decorative plaster bust is based on an ancient sculpture of a classical Graeco-Roma...

North Italian, 16th century Bust of the emperor Vitellius Bronze, on later bronze socle, lead support to reverse 18 cm. / 7 ins (the bust), 23 cm. / 9 ins overall This small yet attractive all’antica bust of a Roman emperor is inspired by a bust in Venice thought to depict Vitellius (15-69 AD), who ruled Rome for only eight months in 69 AD before he was overthrown by Vespasian. The Vitellio Grimani, also known as the pseudo-Vitellius, was discovered in Rome in 1505 during excavations on the Quirinale on land owned by the Venetian cardinal Domenico Grimani (1461-1523). On the death of Grimani the Vitellius was sent to Venice and bequeathed to the Republic of Venice, where it was displayed at the Palazzo Ducale from 1525 to 1593. It is now in the Museo arceologico nazionale di Venezia (inv. 20) and regarded as a portrait of an unknown Roman from the first half of the second century AD. The present small bust, with its rough, waxy surface and imaginative adaptation of the antique model on which it is based, bears all the hallmarks of Renaissance bronze modelling in the north of Italy. Indeed, the vigorous modelling is reminiscent of the works by Andrea Briosco, called Il Riccio (1470-1532), who worked in Padua in the Veneto and specialised in small bronzes based on antique subjects. See, for example, his head of Bacchus (private collection, offered at Sotheby’s London in 2021), which has a similarly waxy treatment of the hair. The fantastical lion-mask on the breastplate, with its stylised face and unusual braids of hair, is also typical of the imaginative re-working of antique motifs by Renaissance artists. This indicates that the present bust is probably by a follower of Riccio working in Padua or another centre of classicism in the Veneto. RELATED LITERATURE: L. Planiscig, 'Andrea Riccio...

North Italian, Veneto, circa 1700 Bust of a classical woman, possibly Diana Marble, on a variegated grey marble socle 41.5 cm. high / 16 ¼ ins (the bust), 56 cm. / 22 ins high, overa...

Italian, 19th century After a model attributed to Guglielmo della Porta (1515-1577) Relief of the Pietà Gilt bronze, on a perspex stand (included) 18.8 cm. x 13 cm. PROVENANCE: P...

Hand carved ebony hardwood bust of a young Benin warrior Traditionally carved Benin artistry Circa 1970 Height 10.75 inch, Width 5.5 inch, Depth 2.75 inc...

Fine portrait kpwan mask with tall braided hair design, dark to black patina, from the Baule People Ivory Coast Africa, ex Fearing. Well carved features, curved slit eyes, open mout...

A finely cast bronze portrait head in the style of the ancient Yoruba kingdom of Ife, Nigeria. This dignified bust exhibits hallmark features of c...

African-Style Wooden Sculpture of a Woman with Ritual Headdress – France, 20th Century Description: This is a sculpture in carved wood, made in France during the 20th century, in th...