ROME, CIRCA 1850

Details

ITALIAN NERO ANTICO MARBLE MODELS OF THE SOLAR OBELISK AND THE LATERAN OBELISK
ROME, CIRCA 1850
Each modeled after the antique, incised with dedication inscriptions on all four sides, one raised on a nero antico marble plinth, the other raised on a rouge giotte marble plinth
35 in. (88.9 cm.) high, the taller

Literature

SFO Museum, All Roads Lead to Rome: 17th–19th Century Architectural Souvenirs from the Collection of Piraneseum, 2017, pp. 40-41 (Solar Obelisk).

Exhibited

SFO Museum, All Roads Lead to Rome: 17th–19th Century Architectural Souvenirs from the Collection of Piraneseum, January 31 - August 17, 2017.

Lot Essay

There are more ancient Egyptian obelisks decorating Rome than there are in Egypt. The Lateran Obelisk, originally erected at Karnak, whose model is the shorter of the two offered here, is the world’s tallest standing Egyptian obelisk.

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