North Italian, 18th century

Baron Mayer Amschel de Rothschild (1818-1874), Mentmore Towers, Buckinghamshire;
by descent to Hannah Primrose, Countess of Rosebery and Midlothian (1851-1980), Mentmore Towers, Buckinghamshire;
by descent to Albert Edward Harry Mayer Archibald Primrose, 6th Earl of Rosebery and 2nd Earl of Midlothian (1882-1974), Mentmore Towers, Buckinghamshire;
his sale, Sotheby's, Mentmore, 18 May 1977, lot 268

Mentmore, Edinburgh, 1884, vol. 1, p. 3, nos 17 and 18

Overall the condition of the busts is good, with some wear and dirt to the surface consistent with age. There are a few losses to the vine leaves in the woman's hair, including to the top leaf at the front, to one on the proper right side at the back (with a small metal dowel), to one on the proper left side, and to another at the back. There are a few minor chips and abrasions, notably to the edges of the vine leaves of both busts and around the truncations. There is some veining to the marble, consistent with the material, including to the woman's proper right temple, around her collar bones, and to the man's chin. There are a few white paint marks to the woman's hair at the back, and there is some sticker residue to both busts at the front of the truncations and at the back. The busts are attached to the socles with plaster, which is slightly visible in areas. The black marble socles are in good condition, with veining throughout consistent with the material. Some of the veins appear to have been filled, and there is an area of loss to one such area at the back of the woman's socle. There are several chips and abrasions along the edges, in particular the bottom edges. There are a few larger chips to the top edge of the woman's socle at the front and the proper right side. The socles are firmly attached to the columns. The griotte marble columns are in good condition, with veining throughout. There are several chips and losses around the top bands. There are further, larger losses around the bottom bands where the columns meet their bases, and to the edges and corners of the bases. There are splashes of white paint to the man's column at the back. There is particular dirt to the bases.
"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."

These beautifully carved marble busts of Bacchic youths exhibit the elegant classicism which emerged in Italian late Baroque sculpture at the close of the 17th century and the beginning of the 18th century. With their idealised faces, impressive over-sized wreaths, and wistful, open-mouthed, expressions, they recall Genoese sculpture from around 1700; in particular the work of Filippo Parodi (1630-1702) and his students. The classicism of the busts, combined with Rococo elements, such as the exaggerated wreaths of grapes and vines, is in tune with wider movements in sculpture throughout Northern Italy, whilst looking forward to the severe Neoclassicism of the later 18th century.

The present busts follow a late Baroque style exemplified by Filippo Parodi, the greatest Genoese sculptor active in the second half of the 17th century. The idealised facial features, with delicate parted lips, and unincised 'blank' eyes, which lend to the figures a sense of timelessness, can be seen throughout Parodi's figurative oeuvre. Compare, for example, with his Triton on a Dolphin in the Galleria Durazzo Pallavicini in Genoa (Armani, op. cit., p. 95). Characteristic of many of Parodi's figures are the exaggeratedly over-sized wreaths or headresses: note, for example, his Penitence, in the Reliquary Chapel of the Santo, Padua, with her enveloping crown of thorns, as well as the large floral wreaths crowning the attendant angels in the same sculptural ensemble (Armani, op. cit., pp. 188-191). The parted lips and almost wistful expressions recall Parodi's Venus and Clyte from his Metamorphosis series in the Palazzo Reale in Genoa (Armani, op. cit., pp. 150-151). These features, together with exaggerated, stylised, attributes recall the sculptor's busts of the Four Seasons at the Villa Pisani at Stra (Guerriero, op. cit., pp. 126-129). Note also the Allegory of Virtue in the Liechtenstein collection, Vienna (inv. no. SK15).

Parodi's style was adopted by his students and followers, who were active throughout the first half of the 18th century. Comparison might be made to sculptures by Angelo de Rossi (1671-1715), who worked with Parodi in the 1680's, before moving to Rome, where he established himself as an important sculptor in his own right. Note Rossi's first major work, his Small Satyr (Genoa, Palazzo Reale; see Armani, op. cit., p. 228), which exhibits the same playful Bacchic subject as the present busts, whilst showing a clear interest in elaborately carved leaves and grapes, and has the same classicising facial structure, with elfin ears. The busts naturally draw comparison with sculptures by Parodi's son, Domenico (1672-1742), who follows the same approach, though with more Baroque vigour. See, for example, his Mansuetudine in the church of S. Filippo Neri, Genoa (Cellini, op. cit., pp. 146-147). The fashion for filling secular villas and gardens with figures from classical mythology, presented with elaborate attributes, and almost ecstatic expressions, swept Northern Italy in the first decades of the 18th century, particularly in the Veneto, where Parodi had himself been active towards the end of his career. The present busts nevertheless exhibit a distinctly Genoese classicism in line with Parodi's work, suggesting that they probably were carved in Liguria by one of his students or followers.

The busts are distinguished by their exemplary English provenance, hailing from Mentmore Towers, Baron Mayer de Rothschild's vast Neo-Jacobean Palace in Buckinghamshire, which had housed one of the greatest collections of 18th-century fine and decorative arts amassed in the Victorian period. Given their Rococo style, they were probably acquired by Baron de Rothschild in the mid century, as opposed to his son-in-law, Lord Rosebery, who added to the collection after his marriage to Hannah de Rothschild. At the Mentmore sale in 1977, the busts were catalogued as French, 19th century. However, their excellent quality, together with their clear correspondences to North Italian late Baroque sculpture, puts their 18th century date beyond doubt.

RELATED LITERATURE
S. Guerriero, 'Le alterne fortune dei marmi: busti, teste di carattere e altre 'scolture moderne' nelle collezioni veneziane tra sei e settecento', G. Pavanello, La scultura veneta del seicento e del settecento, Venice, 2002, pp. 126-129; E. P. Armani and M. C. Galassi, Artisti artigiani del marmo dal Cinquecento al Seicento, vol. ii, Genoa, 1988, pp. 95, 150-151, 188-191; A. N. Cellini, La scultura del settecento, Turin, 1982, pp. 146-147