Ivory statue of a street musician - Lot 210

Lot 210
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Estimation :
3000 - 6000 EUR
Ivory statue of a street musician - Lot 210
Ivory statue of a street musician Very fine carving, showing details of the character's face and accessories (flask of alcohol) Inlay of old-cut red and blue semi-precious stones on the costume The music box, a portable barrel organ, is inlaid with colored enamel and decorated with interlacing and birds. The small monkey on the arm indicates that he was a monkey showman or street musician at the time. The animal is inlaid with sapphire-type stones and also features fine workmanship (hat). Finally, the base is in chased and enameled metal, decorated with fruit, flowers and interlacing on a square lapis lazuli base. Austrian work from Vienna - circa 1890 H. 24 cm Weight : 557 g Object containing ivory, CIC in process of validation. A re-export document is required for all items leaving the EU, at the buyer's expense. Note 1 : A model of an organ player by the same artist can be found in the Lizzadro Museum in Illinois, as well as a second musician. Note 2: From the 18th century onwards, southern Germany, northern Austria and eastern Switzerland saw the development of a particular ivory craft: the creation of figures. The majority of these creations are of great finesse, depicting traditional characters or folklore. Production was extremely successful throughout Europe, supplying the cabinets of curiosity, display cases and tables of wealthy families. Over time, craftsmen sought to differentiate themselves from one another. Often, the base or type of sculpture was used to differentiate between sculptors. From the 1870s onwards, figures inlaid with jewels began to appear, in the style of Renaissance or Indian ivories. This innovation was the work of an as yet unknown artist who produced a variety of merchant and market figures in Vienna between 1870 and 1890. Today, we can find around twenty figures depicting wine merchants, watchmakers, burgomasters, music players, shopkeepers, night watchmen, ... . The special feature of this production is the inlaying of fine stones in the ivory, giving the sculpture an air reminiscent of the Pierrot character, very fashionable at the end of the 19th century. There are three winegrower models by the same artist, and one in Lisbon's Medeiros Museum.
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