A FINE PAIR OF ITALIAN WALNUT FIGURAL TORCHÈRES

A FINE PAIR OF ITALIAN WALNUT FIGURAL TORCHÈRES

BY ANGIOLIO BARBETTI (1805-1873), FLORENCE, DATED '1866'

in the form of a scantily clad Nubian man and woman, with finely carved details heightened with gilding, each with one arm chained, the man with a necklace, the woman with earrings and classical style sandals, standing on a triform base with winged lion's paw feet and scallop shells, the guilloche frieze with signature and date panels inscribed 'Barbetti', 'Anno 1866,''Firenze' (2)

148.7cm high, 51cm wide

Catalogue Note

Angiolo Barbetti was born in Siena in 1805, the son of one of the city's leading wood carvers. Angiolo was a skilled carver, designer and decorator established a flourishing atelier in Florence producing a large range of carved ivory, ebony and walnut furniture including frames, cornices, candelabra and much larger commissions as lavishly inlaid cabinets and tables. A regular award winner in the international fairs and exhibitions, Barbetti was selected to represent Tuscany at the Great Exhibition of 1851 where as part of his commission he won a prize for a Renaissance style walnut console table which can now be found in the Victoria & Albert museum, 24-1851.