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A figure, perhaps ‘Europe’ or St Barbara
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A figure, perhaps ‘Europe’ or St Barbara
Carved alabaster
Museum number: M624
Curatorial note
Statuette of a woman, standing, with a horse crouched at her feet. She wears a crown, stole and ermine mantle and holds in her right hand a model of a domed building and in her left hand a sceptre. The back of the statuette is flat and less highly finished than the front. The figure has been broken and mended about 4in. from the bottom. The design of the figure derives from an engraving in Cesare Ripa, Iconologia (Seconde Partie), Paris, 1644 p.6, where a seated figure with similar attributes (and others in addition), is given to represent “Europe”.
The statuette is fixed to a pedestal consisting of a moulded and enriched marble capital which, in turn, is cemented to a moulded marble base. The capital is enriched with lotus leaves and is perhaps of Indian origin. The top of the cap. Is tooled except for about ¼in. round the rim.
The statuette is fixed to a pedestal consisting of a moulded and enriched marble capital which, in turn, is cemented to a moulded marble base. The capital is enriched with lotus leaves and is perhaps of Indian origin. The top of the cap. Is tooled except for about ¼in. round the rim.
If you have any further information about this object, please contact us: worksofart@soane.org.uk