Pedestal; Trapani, late 18th century. Gilded bronze... Lot 46

Pedestal; Trapani, late 18th century. Gilded bronze and coral applications. Damaged. Provenance: private collection conceived since the 1970s between London and Madrid. Measurements: 15 x 17,5 x 16 cm. Gilded bronze pedestal ornamented with coral applications and chiselled decoration. The piece is supported by four anthropomorphic-shaped legs with the body of a woman, the legs of a lion and the head of an eagle. The piece has a truncated cone-shaped design structured in different registers, the central one being the most decorated as it has coral appliqués and bronze decoration in relief with masks located in the centre of three of the sides, leaving out the back. The city of Trapani was one of the main centres for the production of luxury goods during the Baroque period. Heirs to the classical tradition and also influenced by the Arab world, they created many goods of extreme quality with particularly fine materials. They excelled in alabaster and coral work, as in our case. The fragility of coral prevents large-scale works from being made, so this material requires fundamental skill when carved. Almost like beads, the pieces of red coral are attached to the gilded bronze surface between which other more ornate pieces are interspersed, such as the vegetal motifs intertwined with Roman-inspired candelieri and the central figure that stands out as the theme of the whole.