Giuseppe Valadier (1762-1839) Italian Rome, late 18th century/early 19th century

Overall very minor wear and losses. Minor loss and dents to corners of molding between inner and outer frame. Small hole on center of one long side. Lovely wear to gilding revealing coppery bronze beneath and similar wear to patinated bronze outer frame.
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.
NOTWITHSTANDING THIS REPORT OR ANY DISCUSSIONS CONCERNING CONDITION OF A LOT, ALL LOTS ARE OFFERED AND SOLD "AS IS" IN ACCORDANCE WITH THE CONDITIONS OF SALE PRINTED IN THE CATALOGUE.

In the second half of the eighteenth century, the Roman workshop of the Valadier family was distinguished for its innovative designs and superior quality of workmanship. The production of important silver services, such as grand silver table service for Monsignor Antonio Odescalchi (1795–97), gilt bronze-mounted furniture and both religious and secular objects crafted in gilt bronze, gold and silver were sought after by Roman nobility and the papal court. The vivid contrast between the rich color of the painting or large mosaic originally enclosed by this frame, with the cool color and classicism of the meticulously chiseled bronze, were leitmotifs favored by the Valadier and particularly Giuseppe who was at that moment Rome’s chief exponent of Neoclassism.

We are very grateful to Alvar González-Palacios for providing us with his research and the entry below.

During the time of Luigi Valadier (1726-1785) in what was considered the most famous workshop in Rome, many small frames and ornaments where made in gilt bronze and sometimes in gold & silver. Of these some were very elaborate sculptures in their own right and where destined to be presentation frames for cameos from the Papal Collection some of which are now in the collection for the Louvre.

Other frames where made in the workshop of Luigi Valadie,; like the one in silver, gilt bronze and lapis lazuli made to frame Pius V’s stole (only the drawing of the design now exists) or the frame for a mosaic portrait of the Tzarina Elisabeth now in the Hermitage in St Petersburg dateable to 1750 ¹.

In the eighteenth century in Rome frames made of metal were often made even if now they have become rather rare. For the most part these frames were destined to hold copies of painting made of micro-mosaic and more rarely painting themselves. An example of the later is the frame in silver and gilt bronze which encloses the small Nativity by Pompeo Batoni in the Galleria Corsini in Rome ².  Later during the pontificate of Pius VI there are recorded a series of frames in gilt bronze made in the workshop of Paolo Spagna and his son Giuseppe ^{3 _.}

The major part of the drawings from the workshop of Luigi & Giuseppe Valadier are preserved in the Pinacoteca Civica of Faenza but a group of no less importance was some years ago with a London gallery. This second group has over time been dispersed ⁴. Among these sheets (almost all of which are unpublished) there are two studies for sections of frame that can be compare with the present object. Both the designs & the frame itself are from the period of Giuseppe Valadier that is to say the end of the 18th century before the period of political upheaval during the pontificate of Pius VII, when the administration of Rome was in the hands of the French.

It should be noted that the stylised acanthus leaf in patinated bronze that forms the outer moulding of the present frame is very similar to that in the drawing illustrated here attributed to Giuseppe Valadier or one of his assistants. While the gilded wreath of laurel leaves of the inner section can be compared to the second sheet both of which are included here.

It should also be noted that in a Registro generale (general inventory) ⁵ of the contents of Giuseppe Valadier’s shop from 1810, several frames or part of frames are listed. Among these we can cite “I pezzo di cornice di rame patinato con riporti Dorati” (a section of the frame in patinated copper with gilt decoration); “diverse cornici di rame e piastra”(various frames of copper & steel); “una cornice tonda di metallo dorato fondo di marmo”(a round frame in gilt metal with a marble boarder). In the same inventory among the plaster cast used for casting there is a “ugnatura di cornice con ovali ed altri ornate” (section of frame with ovals & other decoration); “angolo di cornice…con Quattro foglie” (corner of frame.. with a four-leafed motif); “cornice con quattro baccelli” (frame with four pods); “gola con due foglie frappate”(moulding with scalloped foliage); “gola con tre fogli”(moulding with three leaves). In other areas of Giuseppe Valadier’s workshop were stored cast for other types of frame including those for use around the marble tops for tables and commodes typically used in Rome during this period.

¹  A. Gonsalez-Palacios, Arredi e ornamenti alla corte di Roma, Milan, 2004, pp. 315-   429; Specifically pp. 318 and 326
² The frame dated 1748: A.M. Clark, Pompeo Batoni, Oxford, 1985, cat. 120, p.242, tav115
³ Gonzalez-Palacios, op. cit. note 1, pp. 226-241; A. Gonzalez-Palacios, Nostalgia e    invenzione, Milan, 2010, pp. 197-203
⁴  I had occasion some years ago to study a large part of these pages of designs and & to get photographic copies of them.
⁵  This Registro generale (General inventory) was with the same London gallery that had the collection of drawings mentioned above and of which I also have a transcription.