Bidspirit auction | Giuseppe de Levis (Verona, 1552

Giuseppe de Levis (Verona, 1552 - Verona, 1622) Workshop of - Black and gilded patinated bronze; 15x11x10.5 cm. This inkwell is attributed to the foundry of Giuseppe de Levis, a Jewish founder from Verona. An almost identical model belongs to the Thyssen Bornemisza collection, listed by Anthony Radcliffe as a De Levis workshop. The central body features three angel faces divided by projecting volutes and supported by as many seahorses. On the cap a golden cupid with mercury in perfect condition. The casting has little cold working and is rather material, covered with a black lacquer, a distinctive element of the era to which it belongs, the 17th century. Biblical Charles Avery, Joseph de Levis & Company, Philip Wilson Publishers, London, 2016, p. 177. Anthony Radcliffe-Malcolm Baker-Michael Maek-Gerard, The Thissen Bornemitsza Collection Renaissance and Later Sculpture, Philip Wilson Publishers, London, 1992, pp. 234-237.