Lot 80: A BRONZE BOWL

A BRONZE BOWL
WORKSHOP OF GIUSEPPE DE LEVIS (1552-1614?), CIRCA 1600
Dark brown patina; traces of verdi gris; old lead repairs; the bottom with a later circular plate; the top of one handle restored; minor dents
6¼ in. (15.9 cm.) high; 13½ in. (34.3 cm.) wide

COMPARATIVE LITERATURE:
C. Avery, 'Giuseppe de Levis of Verona - Bronze founder and sculptor of the late 16th century', reprinted in Studies in European Sculpture, London, 1981, I, pp. 45-78.

No VAT will be charged on the hammer price, but VAT at 15% will be added to the buyer's premium which is invoiced on a VAT inclusive basis.
The highly individual bronze bowl offered here can, on the basis of stylistic comparisons, be related to works of the Veronese sculptor Giuseppe de Levis. This can be most clearly seen in the near identical frieze of fantastical winged female figures alternating with symmetrical foliate scrolls that can be found on the bells and mortars that Avery refers to in his article on the artist (op. cit., p. 46, no. 2; pp. 48-9, nos. 6 and 8; p. 50., no. 11). Further comparisons can be made between the grotesque handles and the similar beasts on the base of an inkwell in the Metropolitan Museum, New York, as well as the figures on the bases of two andirons in the Victoria and Albert Museum, London (ibid., nos. p. 59, fig. 11 and p. 63 fig. 1, respectively).