$92,250
After Antonio Canova (Italian, 1757-1822) Pair of Carrara Marble Figures of the Pugilists Creugas and Damoxenos, Rome, late 19th/early 20th century, each inscribed "Morelli e Rinaldi Roma" and with figure's Italian names, "Creugante" and "Damosseno," on base, Creugas with his fist resting atop his head, ht. 83, and Damoxenos poised to strike his fatal blow, ht. 80 in. Preview by appointment only in Skinner's Marlborough Gallery. N.B. Canova's original models are housed in the Pio Clementino Museum, part of the Vatican Museums. He began sketches and models of the figures in the 1790s and completed the marble figure of Creugas in 1801. Pope Pius VII acquired it for the Vatican collections and commissioned the figure of Damoxenos as well. Canova's figures helped to fill the void left after Napoleon pillaged ancient sculpture from the Vatican collections. The workshop of Morelli e Rinaldi specialized in high-quality reproductions of famous sculpture in marble and bronze. Located at Via del Babuino 132, Roma, English travel guides and U.S. customs documents record their existence from c. 1898-1904. The Olympic Club in San Francisco owns another pair of marble pugilists signed by Morelli e Rinaldi.
Auctioneer:
Skinner
Date:
2014-07-19
