Exceptional hourglass Silver, partially... Lot 40

Exceptional hourglass Silver, partially gilt, lapis lazuli, amethyst powder, colorless domed glass, colored painter's enamel on copper. Marks: BZ Rome (on the base, the base of the atlas and the globe). H 83, W 26,5, D 26 cm. The original transport box made of solid walnut, with wrought-iron hinges and a latch, inside upholstered and lined with red (later) damask, h 61.3, w 32, d 31.5 cm. Rome, 1589. The pistons of the hourglass are placed on a high, richly articulated pillar pedestal. The four sides are decorated with openwork relief appliqués in silver and vermeil over lapis lazuli panels, the corners are appliquéd with sculpted herms over forked volutes. Around the four sides of the base is an inscription band engraved in Latin capitals: "XISTVS-V-SACR-CONN-FERDINANDI-I-DE-MEDICIS- ET-CRISTINAE-DE-LORENA-BEN./ SICVT GRANA SILICIS IN HVIVS CLEPSJDRAE/ BINIS VITREIS AMPVLLIS SIVNT MENTES IN VNVM/ ET-CORPORA-CONIVNCTA-VSQVE-DVM-VIVATIS-ET-VLTRA" (As the grains of sand are united in the two glass ampoules of the hourglass, so let us be united in one mind and body in life and beyond). On all four sides of the pedestal are large cartouches around oval enamel plaques with the arms of Pope Sixtus V, the Medici coat of arms, the arms of the Kingdom of France, and a plaque inscribed "Rome 1589". Round arches with shell ornaments arch over the coats of arms. Four plastic putti sit on the corners of the base of the hourglass, embraced by inscribed banderoles and holding attributes: 1st putto with sun disk and banderole "SOL LUVCET OMNIBVS" (The sun shines for all). 2. putto with book and banderole "NVLLI SAPERE CASV OBTIGIT" (No one becomes wise by chance). 3. putto with compass, protractor and banderole "EST MODVS IN REBVS" (measure is in all things). 4. putto with scissors, thread and banderole "TVAM NESCIS" (You do not know your hour). Above the hourglass on a flat round vessel with a leaf volute tendril in relief stands a fully plastic bearded atlas, carrying the globe on his bent back. A gilded profiled band with Roman hour numerals runs around the equator. The upper hemisphere can be opened by means of a hinge. A knob marks the upper end of the earth's axis, and an hour hand is attached below it. The hourglass is not only an important historical object, but also an important art-historical one. The Counter-Reformation emblem is supported by a lavish Baroque design. In 1585 Pope Sixtus V (1521 - 1590) was elected to office. He was the first pope during whose time of study the Council of Trent took place, which had a strong influence on his life and reign. The iconographic programme of the hourglass was probably commissioned by the Pope himself in honour of the Grand Duke of Tuscany. The quotation engraved on the pedestal evokes the good relations that were to exist not only between Ferdinand I and Christine of Lorraine, but also between Pope Sixtus V and the Grand Duke of Tuscany. For in 1589, after the assassination of King Henry III of France, Ferdinand I supported Henry IV of France (from Navarre and Protestant) in his struggle against Spain and the Catholic League. Therefore, Sixtus V chose an object that would symbolically appeal to Ferdinand's loyalty to Rome, have a vanitas character, and at the same time allude to Ferdinand I's interest in natural science. Yet Ferdinando I de' Medici (1549 - 1609) was a churchman. He was made a cardinal in 1562, at the age of 14, but without having been ordained a priest. After the death of his elder brother Francesco in 1587, he became Grand Duke of Tuscany, but he retained the cardinalate until his marriage. At the request of the French queen Catherine (née Caterina Maria Romula de' Medici), he was married per procurationem to her granddaughter Christine de Lorraine (1565 - 1636) at Blois Castle on 8 December 1588. Catherine died before the marriage contract was signed. She left Christine, as her principal heir, an immense fortune and also a great treasure of art, including the famous Valois tapestries now in the Uffizi Gallery in Florence. The French princess first saw her husband, the Grand Duke, on 28 April 1589 on her arrival in Pisa. The magnificent wedding festivities, which lasted several days, then began. Provenance Formerly the Tammaro de Marinis Collection (187