Marble Pedestal Table
A Marble Pedestal Table in Egyptian Red Breccia
Northern Italy, Mid 16th Century
Provenance:
Collection Mérieux, Lyon
Private French Collection
Height: 90cm / 100cm with metal stand
Diameter: 107cm
Carved entirely from Egyptian Red Breccia, this rare pedestal table is a remarkable survival of its type. The octagonal top rests upon a boldly modelled baluster-form support, creating a design that is both architectural in conception and sculptural in effect.
This Egyptian Red Breccia is rarely encountered on such a scale, more commonly appearing in smaller decorative objects and architectural elements. Its rich red ground is scattered with fragments of cream, ochre and pale rose stone, producing a striking surface.
The unfinished lower section of the pedestal suggests that it was originally intended to be fixed into the floor, likely within a palace or villa as part of a carefully conceived architectural interior.
Such tables were often used to display bronzes, vases or other precious objects, functioning as much as pedestals as pieces of furniture.
A closely related octagonal marble table, attributed to Mantua and dated to around 1550, is preserved in the collection of the J. Paul Getty Museum, Los Angeles.
The similarity between the two tables is striking. Both share an almost identical octagonal top and are conceived around a central faceted pedestal support.
The breccia itself is likely ancient and reworked during the sixteenth century - It exhibits the slow effects of centuries of wear, with the softer matrix having gradually receded around the harder inclusions, leaving them subtly proud of the surface.
This distinctive texture, developed over generations, is a characteristic more commonly associated with both ancient and Renaissance marbles.
Northern Italy, Mid 16th Century
Provenance:
Collection Mérieux, Lyon
Private French Collection
Height: 90cm / 100cm with metal stand
Diameter: 107cm
Carved entirely from Egyptian Red Breccia, this rare pedestal table is a remarkable survival of its type. The octagonal top rests upon a boldly modelled baluster-form support, creating a design that is both architectural in conception and sculptural in effect.
This Egyptian Red Breccia is rarely encountered on such a scale, more commonly appearing in smaller decorative objects and architectural elements. Its rich red ground is scattered with fragments of cream, ochre and pale rose stone, producing a striking surface.
The unfinished lower section of the pedestal suggests that it was originally intended to be fixed into the floor, likely within a palace or villa as part of a carefully conceived architectural interior.
Such tables were often used to display bronzes, vases or other precious objects, functioning as much as pedestals as pieces of furniture.
A closely related octagonal marble table, attributed to Mantua and dated to around 1550, is preserved in the collection of the J. Paul Getty Museum, Los Angeles.
The similarity between the two tables is striking. Both share an almost identical octagonal top and are conceived around a central faceted pedestal support.
The breccia itself is likely ancient and reworked during the sixteenth century - It exhibits the slow effects of centuries of wear, with the softer matrix having gradually receded around the harder inclusions, leaving them subtly proud of the surface.
This distinctive texture, developed over generations, is a characteristic more commonly associated with both ancient and Renaissance marbles.