White Carrara marble group on an integral marble base.

19th or early 20th Century Italian and attributed to Galleria Romanelli.  This is a very accomplished piece, Romantic in style and skilled in its portrayal of movement.  

The sculptor has adopted particularly effective and novel surface techniques to depict the turbulence of the waves upon which the group is supported.

The sculptor certainly drew his inspiration for this piece from a classical source. There are many stories concerning sea creatures in both Greek and Roman mythology. For instance the “hydra” slain by Perseus, the “ketos” dispatched by Herakles, the “syclla” killed by Odysseus and the “hippocamp” a horse /fish hybrid ridden by Poseidon (Neptune). There are plentiful sources of illustration of these mythical creatures in ancient Greek and Roman visual arts including vase paintings, wall paintings, architectural sculpture, friezes and mosaics. The most famous of these is probably The Triumph of Neptune in the baths of Neptune in Ostia which shows Poseidon driving before him four splendid hippocamps surrounded by a retinue of Tritons and young boys with halters in their hands riding on the backs of dolphins.

In similar posture the boy in this work balances triumphantly on the reluctant seahorse’s back and is subduing him with either a halter or whip. The writhing waves beneath him create crests of  foam which are captured with great delicacy by the artist.

Unsigned

Height: 35 inches (90cm)

Condition: Excellent with minor restoration to one ear of hippocamp and halter.

References:

T H Carpenter: Art and Myth in Ancient Greece  [Thames and Hudson, 1991]