Attributed to Simone Bianco (active 1512-1553) Italian, Venice, circa 1520-1540

Overall the condition of the marble is good with some dirt and wear to the surface consistent with age. There are a few chips and abrasions, notably to the tip of the nose, the ear and the chin. There are a few minor scratches, including to the cheek. There are several minor dirt marks, including to the hair. There is a naturally occurring metallic inclusion to the jaw with an orange stain. There are a few minor abrasions to the bottom edge. The ebonised wood mount is in good condition with some dirt and wear and minor stable splitting. Joints are slightly visible at the corners and edges. There is a metal wire for hanging at the back and a support for standing up.
"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."

During the decades on either side of the year 1500 numerous Venetian sculptors strove to attain the ideal human form. It was not just the conquest of nature that inspired these artists, the style evolved from an attempt to understand and emulate beauty as the Greeks and Romans saw it. Together with the Lombardo brothers, Simone Bianco was the foremost proponent of this style. His busts of female figures closely follow classical models but are always imbued with a presence and liveliness that give them a distinctly Renaissance air. His taste for elaborate hairstyles contributes to the modernity of the figures. The present plaque is a good example of Bianco's qualities: he has taken an official portrait of Faustina the Elder, the wife of Emperor Antoninus Pius that became a symbol of female virtue upon her death, from a coin but renders her as a person of flesh and blood and modernises her classical melon coiffure. Bianco's Bust of a woman in the Statens Museum Copenhagen (inv. no. KMS5516) has the hair similarly arranged in braids and displays an equally subtly detailed hairline underneath the pulled together locks. A further example of a profile relief by Bianco is the signed Christ in the collection of the counts of Schönborn, Pommersfelden.

RELATED LITERATURE
P. Meller, 'Marmi e bronzi di Simone Bianco', Mitteilungen des Kunsthistorisches Institutes in Florenz 22, no. 2, 1977, pp. 199-210; M. Schulz, 'Simone Bianco', Saur 10, 1995, pp. 445-447; C. Kryza-Gersch, 'Discovered in the stores: two female busts by Simone Bianco in the Kunsthistorisches Museum in Vienna', P. Motture, et al., Carvings, casts and collectors. The art of Renaissance sculpture, London, 2013, pp. 72-87