Important Judaica
Important Judaica
An Important Italian Large Silver Torah Crown, Venice, Mid 18th Century
Lot Closed
June 16, 07:09 PM GMT
Estimate
200,000 - 300,000 USD
Lot Details
Description
An Important Italian Large Silver Torah Crown, Venice, Mid 18th Century
cylindrical, embossed, chased and pierced in high relief with a symmetrical arrangement of shells enclosed by baroque foliage, large flowerheads and fruit on matted ground, surrounding five deep cartouches each applied by screws with a silver-gilt emblem- a menorah, a laver held by a hand pouring water into a basin held by a second hand, a censor, a flaming altar, and the Temple in Jerusalem, each on matching twin scroll bracket, the base band embossed with five corresponding cartouches , each inscribed in Hebrew, marked with assay master’s mark ?PL G with fleur-de-lys between (Piero Pazzi no. 247, 1758-1802) five times near the top, three times on base band, and twice on base rim, the base rim with three other marks, not clear, one possibly G L (Piero Pazzi no.111, 1709-35), also struck four times with an 1806 Austrian control mark K for Leibach, now Ljubljana, capital of Slovenia
40 oz 10 dwt
1260g
Height 8 7/8 in; Diameter 10 ¼ in.
22.8 cm; 26 cm
The inscription reads, "The brothers of the house of Hefetz [Gentili], in the year 'Who deals graciously with His anointed' [II Sam. 22:51; Ps. 18:51], renewed in the year [5]513 [1753]." The inscription recording the restoration of this crown in 1753 is intriguing. The mark G L while not clear may be that of the earlier maker as conjectured above. This mark is only on the attached base rim.
A similar crown 1770-1771 is in the Comunita Israelitica, Livorno, See the catalogue Vivian B. Mann, Gardens and Ghettos, fig . 106 p.121, cat. No.207. Another crown , Venice 1752, in the Comunita Israelitica, Florence, shows gilt emblems on comparable brackets, op.cit. fig 108 p.123, cat.no. 205.
A slightly earlier Venetian crown by Andrea Zambelli formed part of the Michael and Judy Steinhardt Collection, sold Sotheby’s, New York, 29 April 2013, lot 113, now in the Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York. Another listed as circa 1700 is illustrated in Treasures from the Jewish Ghetto of Venice, exhibition catalogue, 2014, p.66.