EXCEPTIONAL PAIR OF WALL FOUNTAINS IN THE FORM... Lot 20

EXCEPTIONAL PAIR OF WALL FOUNTAINS IN THE FORM OF COQUILLES Baroque period - Italy, 17th century Bardiglio marble (or grey Carrara) and white Carrara marble H. 115 cm, W. 100 cm, D. 69 cm Provenance Former collection Franco and Alberto di Castro, Rome Collection Paris Exhibition Palais Galliéra 1974, Jean de Bologne ... This rare pair of shells in grey and white Carrara marble is decorated with a grimacing mask in the manner of the Roman fountains of the 17th century for which many projects are preserved (fig. 1). The quality of our sculptor is shown here in the molding of the basins, comparable to that of the wall fountain of Santa Maria Maggiore (fig. 2). Here a deep groove frees the basin from its envelope, which rests on a sea snail. We note the beautiful spiral movement of the mollusk.