Life-Size Italian Carrara Marble Hand Carved Sculpture, P Romanelli "Sulamitide"

Description

An Incredible and Quite Impressive Life-Sized 19th Century Italian Carrara Marble Hand-Carved Sculpture by Pasquale Romanelli, "Sulamitide". This marble sculpture titled Sulamitide is signed by the Italian sculptor Pasquale Romanelli (1812–1887), a prominent Florentine neoclassical artist active during the mid to late 19th century. The signature, carved clearly into the base, reads "P. Romanelli Fecit Firenze 1873". Romanelli trained under Lorenzo Bartolini and later succeeded him as director of Florence’s Accademia di Belle Arti. His work was well regarded in Italy and abroad, often centered around allegorical and biblical themes executed in marble. The subject is inspired by the 18th century author Giuseppe Maria Ercolani's play La Sulamitide boschereccia sagra di Neralco pastore arcade, published in 1732, about a son of the king of Egypt during the time of Solomon. The figure is presented in a kneeling posture on a round naturalistic base, with her left leg folded beneath her and her right foot planted in front. She wears a headscarf bordered with carved roundels and tied behind the ear, revealing elaborately rendered hair that cascades in thick locks. Her face is slightly tilted downward and turned to the side, with closed eyes and parted lips, conveying a meditative or introspective expression. Her neck is adorned with a pointed bead necklace, and she wears circular earrings. The composition is delicately balanced, with the right arm extended and the left hand drawing up a striped, texturally contrasted drape across the chest and shoulders. In her right hand, she holds a stylized flower, carved with open apertures to represent a lotus seed pod, resting over smaller flower buds. The base features further floral detailing, with scattered leaves and blossoms in high relief. The sculpture is carved entirely from Italian carrara marble. The surface treatment varies across the piece, with smooth, polished skin contrasted against the matte, stippled texture of the base and the subtly striated treatment of the drapery. The clothing is rendered in alternating polished and roughened bands, imitating woven textile patterns. The modeling of the fingers and toes is particularly precise, with anatomical detail retained even in recessed areas. The figure’s expression, posture, and garments are characteristic of the Romantic-Neoclassical style popular in Florence at the time, combining idealized beauty with a biblical or allegorical subject. Italy, Circa: 1873

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