- 104
Attributed to Francesco Fanelli (1577- after 1657) Anglo-Italian, mid 17th century
Estimate
20,000 - 30,000 GBP
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Description
- A bronze group of The Infant Hercules wrestling with two serpents
- Anglo-Italian, mid 17th century
with integrally-cast base and mounted on an ebonised wood plinth
Condition
Wear and loss to patina as visible in catalogue photograph. Minor scratches and general wear consistent with age. Drilled whole in center of base plate for attachment to former base. Upper section of serpent possibly reattached.
"In response to your inquiry, we are pleased to provide you with a general report of the condition of the property described above. Since we are not professional conservators or restorers, we urge you to consult with a restorer or conservator of your choice who will be better able to provide a detailed, professional report. Prospective buyers should inspect each lot to satisfy themselves as to condition and must understand that any statement made by Sotheby's is merely a subjective, qualified opinion. Prospective buyers should also refer to any Important Notices regarding this sale, which are printed in the Sale Catalogue.
NOTWITHSTANDING THIS REPORT OR ANY DISCUSSIONS CONCERNING A LOT, ALL LOTS ARE OFFERED AND SOLD AS IS" IN ACCORDANCE WITH THE CONDITIONS OF BUSINESS PRINTED IN THE SALE CATALOGUE."
"In response to your inquiry, we are pleased to provide you with a general report of the condition of the property described above. Since we are not professional conservators or restorers, we urge you to consult with a restorer or conservator of your choice who will be better able to provide a detailed, professional report. Prospective buyers should inspect each lot to satisfy themselves as to condition and must understand that any statement made by Sotheby's is merely a subjective, qualified opinion. Prospective buyers should also refer to any Important Notices regarding this sale, which are printed in the Sale Catalogue.
NOTWITHSTANDING THIS REPORT OR ANY DISCUSSIONS CONCERNING A LOT, ALL LOTS ARE OFFERED AND SOLD AS IS" IN ACCORDANCE WITH THE CONDITIONS OF BUSINESS PRINTED IN THE SALE CATALOGUE."
Catalogue Note
The modelling of this dramatic composition shows that it was intended to be appreciated from a number of different viewpoints. It depicts the Infant Hercules wresting violently with the two serpents sent to kill him in his sleep by the vengeful Hera. Hercules' agonised expression recalls the faces on the Laocoon group in the Vatican and the Infant Hercules killing a snake in the Tribuna of the Uffizi and captures the innate strength of the mythical hero even as a young child.
The model is known in a number of different casts of varying quality and detail. Examples are in the Kunsthistorischesmuseum, Vienna, the Fitzwilliam Museum, Cambridge and the Boymans-van Beuningen Museum in Rotterdam, the latter being a particularly fine cast. Until the early 1980's the model was successively believed to be Italian, 16th century (Bode), Venetian, 16th century (Planiscig), Florentine, 16th century (Leithe-Jasper) and Netherlandish, 17th century (Draper). The viability of an attributuion to Fanelli was first raised by Avery and Radcliffe in 1980 which was expanded upon by Emil van Binnebeke in 1994 when he catalogued the version in Rotterdam as by Fanelli, the Florence-trained, Genoa-based sculptor who worked for King Charles I in London during the 1630's and early 1640's. The basis for Binnebeke's attribution, which is undoubtedly correct, rests on its close similarity to one of the fountain designs (illustrated by Avery op.cit.) that is included in Fanelli's book of engravings, the Varie Architeture. The designs are plausibly believed to relate to his involvement in the ambitious Italianate garden complex for Queen Henrietta-Maria's new palace at Wimbledon, begun in 1639.
RELATED LITERATURE
E. van Binnebeke, Bronze sculptrue. Sculpture 1500-1800 in the collection of the Boymans-van Beuningen Museum, Rotterdam, 1994, pp.132-33, no.38; V. Avery and J. Dillon, Renaissance and Baroque Bronzes from the Fitzwilliam Museum, Cambridge, 2002, no.223, pp.168-171 and 271-273
The model is known in a number of different casts of varying quality and detail. Examples are in the Kunsthistorischesmuseum, Vienna, the Fitzwilliam Museum, Cambridge and the Boymans-van Beuningen Museum in Rotterdam, the latter being a particularly fine cast. Until the early 1980's the model was successively believed to be Italian, 16th century (Bode), Venetian, 16th century (Planiscig), Florentine, 16th century (Leithe-Jasper) and Netherlandish, 17th century (Draper). The viability of an attributuion to Fanelli was first raised by Avery and Radcliffe in 1980 which was expanded upon by Emil van Binnebeke in 1994 when he catalogued the version in Rotterdam as by Fanelli, the Florence-trained, Genoa-based sculptor who worked for King Charles I in London during the 1630's and early 1640's. The basis for Binnebeke's attribution, which is undoubtedly correct, rests on its close similarity to one of the fountain designs (illustrated by Avery op.cit.) that is included in Fanelli's book of engravings, the Varie Architeture. The designs are plausibly believed to relate to his involvement in the ambitious Italianate garden complex for Queen Henrietta-Maria's new palace at Wimbledon, begun in 1639.
RELATED LITERATURE
E. van Binnebeke, Bronze sculptrue. Sculpture 1500-1800 in the collection of the Boymans-van Beuningen Museum, Rotterdam, 1994, pp.132-33, no.38; V. Avery and J. Dillon, Renaissance and Baroque Bronzes from the Fitzwilliam Museum, Cambridge, 2002, no.223, pp.168-171 and 271-273