A Renaissance style antique marble inlaid table top 2007-2012, executed by the Opificio delle Pietre Dure, Florence

an inlaid antique marble table top (commesso) of rectangular form, centred by a octagonal medallion of Alabastro orientale, banded with breccia di Semesanto (from the island of Skyros in Greece); the inner rectangular panel has a ground with Giallo antico (Marmor Numidicum, from Numidia in Tunisia), the corner cartouches are of Bianco e nero antico (Marmor celticum), with borders made of Breccia d’Egitto, Rosso antico (from Tenaro, in Greece) and Lapis-lazuli. The outer border has a Belgium black marble ground with corner alabaster cartouches with Breccia d’Egitto, Rosso antico, Lapis-lazuli and Giallo di Siena frames; eight alabaster cartouches to sides with frames made of Brocatello di Spagna (from Tortosa) and Rosso antico, alternating with four central ones, two of alabaster and two Bianco e nero antico, but all with frames of Breccia d’Egitto, Giallo di Siena, Rosso antico e Lapis-lazuli; drapery elements of Alabastro a pecorella, from Algeria, link all the cartouches which have finials of mother-of-pearl and coral, the whole outlined in white carrara marble; inscribed "Opificio delle Pietre Dure 2012"

In excellent condition. Ready to be placed. For all sales which take place on or after 1 February 2015, please note that the rate of buyer's premium for each lot (charged as a percentage of the hammer price achieved for that lot) has been revised and shall be calculated at the thresholds set out below: Buyer's premium is 25% of the hammer price up to and including £100,000; Buyer's premium is 20% of the hammer price on any amount in excess of £100, 000 up to and including £1,800,000; Buyer's premium is 12% of the hammer price on any amount in excess of £1,800,000. As stated above, the revised thresholds are effective as of 1 February 2015.
"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 1588, Grand Duke Ferdinando I de Medici established a court laboratory in Florence focusing on the manufacture of works of art made of semi-precious stones and marbles. Inspired by Antiquity and often using Imperial Roman marbles, the result was an extraordinary production of table tops, cabinets and decorative panels which became trophy works of art for European royalty and aristocracy.

The Opificio delle Pietre Dure, the heir to this laboratory, has appointed Sotheby’s to sell this superb table top produced by their workshops and inspired by an existing top in the Museo degli Argenti in Florence, also known as the ‘Medici Treasury’, dating back to the late 16^th century and first published by AnnaMaria Giusti in La Cappella dei principi e le pietre dure a Firenze, 1978, cat.5, pp.256-257, tav.6.

This top is documented as being in Villa del Poggio Imperiale in the 17^th century and it shows the predominant taste towards the end of the 16^th century, both in Rome and Florence, a period when there was active promotion of excavations within the former Roman Empire territories, to find rare and beautiful stones and marbles.

The two tops vary only slightly in dimension, and the choice of stones was left to the team according to availability and taste. Painstakingly manufactured over the course of 5 years, the team involved in this project (Tommaso Bogi, Cosimo Tosi, Sara Guarducci and Giancarlo Raddi) only used traditional tools and the ancient technique and had the privilege of choosing the stones from the actual Medicean collection of antique marble and stones, which the Florentine patrons brought over from Rome in large quantities as prize possessions.

The Execution

The first step was acquiring a slab of white Carrara marble. The design was then transferred in pencil on to the marble surface through carbon paper; then the work of scasso began, i.e., removing the areas that were designed to accommodate the inlay of coloured marbles. Working with a chisel and hammer, following the traditional sculpture technique,  scassi  of about a centimetre deep were applied, leaving the thin white outlines that defined the decorative design exposed - the cigli, according to the antique term.

The process of scasso and the following intarsia of polychrome marbles was carried out in sections, from the outer strip towards the centre of the slab. The individual sections were executed with traditional techniques and instruments, i.e., pasting a tracing paper on the chosen 'slice' of marble of around 6/7mm thickness. The slice was then blocked by a clamp to a workbench, after the model always used in the opificio. At this point the process of cutting started, using an arched saw - made from a chestnut branch bent by steam - with a copper wire. By rhythmically moving the bow, the slice is sawed following the outline of paper and covering the wire with abrasive powder (Carborundum), which was humidified at each cut of the saw. To ensure a perfect join with the corresponding breaking point, the edges of the cut sections are smoothed with iron shavings.

The sections were then inlaid in the marble ground and fixed with traditional glue made of beeswax and resin, dissolved in hot water and poured in the gaps of the marble top.

The final step is the polishing of the surface, which also involves flattening the stones in order to achieve a perfectly smooth surface. This polishing is done by manually rubbing a block of chalcedony repeatedly over the surface; progressively rubbing finer abrasives on the surface.

The perimeter of the top is slightly larger than its model at the Museo degli Argenti, however, the measurements of the decorative composition are identical. It was decided not to add a frame to the edge of the table but instead chisel the slab with a 'bull nose' moulding (becco di civetta), which frequently occurred on 16^th century tables.