A very rare Capodimonte porcelain figure of a mutilated soldier, circa 1750-55

Otto (1870-1944) and Magdalena (1879-1950) Blohm, Hamburg and Caracas;

The Property of the late Otto and Magdalene Blohm, Part II, Sotheby’s London, 25 April 1961, lot 457 (£1,900 to Patch);

The Collection of Giovanni & Gabriella Barilla, Geneva, Sotheby’s London, 14 March 2012, lot 192.

R. Schmidt, Early European Porcelain as collected by Otto Blohm, Monaco, 1953, p. 276, pl. 105, no. 401.

A. Mottola Molfino, L'Arte della Porcellana in Italia, Busto Arsizio, 1977, vol. II, pl. 190.

There is nothing like 'The Mutilated Soldier' nor any comparable models within Gricci's oeuvre. In this figure Gricci tackles a harrowing theme, successfully expressing his capabilities as a true sculptor in a figure that may be seen as a one-off, a piece of bravura work. Its large scale, when compared to other figure models of related themes, suggests that it was conceived as a work to be read in its own right, a stand alone piece. Perhaps, by placing such horror, the wounded and suffering soldier, as a crowning glory to the war trophies, Grici intended this figure to be read as a reminder of the consequences of war.

It is conceivable that for this sculpture Gricci drew inspiration from Gian Domenico Ferretti's canvas ‘The Mutilated Harlequin Returns from War’, circa 1742, now in the Galleria del Palazzo degli Alberti, Prato. In his painting, Ferretti depicts Harlequin returning home, at the moment of his sad encounter with Colombine, with a rifle slung over his shoulder, his head bowed, supported by crutches because of a wound to his right leg. Harlequin is therefore more dejected than in pain, unlike Gricci's soldier, who is caught at the moment of his greatest suffering after recently sustaining his wounds. However, given Gricci's undoubted knowledge of Ferretti's work, it would seem reasonable to conclude that for his ‘Mutilated Soldier' as for his other figures, he took his cue from the Florentine artist, his contemporary and countryman. In this model, all Gricci's sensibility is brought to bear on the situation of the social classes who were most exploited by those in power and who suffered the consequences of the struggles between powerful interests.

Even in the series of street sellers, the so-called 'Voci di Napoli’ it is characteristic of Gricci that he chose for his inspiration the engravings of Annibale Carracci's 'Le Arti per via', published in 1646, rather that the 'Cris de Paris' by Christopher Huet which were used at Meissen around the same time and which are perhaps more graceful but less vigorous. Gricci's work can hardly be considered as politically engaged as it might be if we were talking about an artist in our own time, but in it we can see an intuitive understanding of the realities of life which he tried to portray without eliminating those aspects which might, theoretically, have disturbed his aristocratic patrons. 

The canvases of the best known artists and illustrators of eighteenth century daily life, such as Giuseppe Bonito, Gaspare Traversi and later Pietro Fabris show how living in Naples, where the lower classes lived in close proximity with the upper classes, gave them a certain advantage as they responded, in pictures and sculpture, to the destitution and disfigurement of the people in the streets. In this cultural climate a porcelain figure like ‘The Mutiliated Soldier', whose subject matter seems so anomalous, could be understood and appreciated. It should also be remembered that the great Neapolitan families were used to brutal depictions including those among crib figures which included beggars with amputated limbs and old peasants with deformities. These figures, known as 'accademie', which artists like Giuseppe Sammartino and Matteo Bottiglieri made entirely in terracotta, were always included in the extensive crib scenes which were set up each Christmas in the elegant drawing rooms of the rich.

No other versions of 'The Mutilated Soldier' are extant. It has been published several times and comes from the prestigious collection of Otto and Magdalene Blohm, which was offered at auction by Sotheby's in London between 1960 and 1961, in three historic sessions. Bought by a private collector, it was subsequently acquired by Giovanni and Gabriella Barilla from a direct descendant, an acquisition in which I had the privilege of being involved.

Angela Caròla-Perrotti, translated by Emma Basset