Workshop of Severo Calzetta da Ravenna (active 1496 to 1543) - Lot 348

Workshop of Severo Calzetta da Ravenna (active 1496 to 1543) Padua or Ravenna, 16th century Statuette of a standing satyr in patinated bronze, depicting a faun striding forward, holding a cornucopia in his hands, the receptacle of a candle. Bronze Marble base composed of Sarancolin marble and Griotte red marble Old marble base (accidents) H. 22 - W. 6.5 - D. 10.5 cm Provenance: Former French collection, from a Bordeaux château, passed down through the generations. Analysis reports Thermoluminescence test attesting to the age of the cast iron compatible with the period of Severo da Ravenna's production, X-ray radiography, macroscopic and microscopic study Laboratoires LAMOA (expertise 11-06 OA)-SAS Re.S.Artes R241247A dated July 15, 2013. Several technical elements are consistent with the production of S. Da Ravenna, such as the introduction of a ground quartz powder which is a peculiarity specific to S. Da Ravenna (possibility of consulting the analysis report). This model is one of the known variants of the standing Satyr and was part of an office set attributed to Severo da Ravenna, complemented by the kneeling Satyr, the latter carrying a bowl for ink or sand. Only one example of the kneeling Satyr, in private hands in Zurich, bears the SE mark now recognized as the artist's signature. Severo da Ravenna appears in a document from Ravenna in 1496. He then moved to Padua in the 1500s, where he produced a marble statue of St. John the Baptist for the Basilica of St. Anthony in Padua. In his treatise De sculptura, published in 1504, the humanist Pomponius Gauricus wrote that he had mastered sculpture in bronze, marble and wood. In 1509, he left Padua before the arrival of the armies of the League of Cambrai and Emperor Maximilian. He moved to Ferrara, where he opened several workshops, then to Ravenna, where he spent the rest of his life and established a particularly prolific bronze foundry. His art is close to that of other great bronzemakers of the period, such as Bartolomeo Bellano, Andrea Riccio and Desiderio da Firenze. Not particularly original, he was part of the post-Donatellian movement that developed a naturalistic and grotesque taste. His output was highly diversified, ranging from satyrs to religious figures, domestic objects (candlesticks, inkwells) and antique subjects. This bronze was made using the indirect lost-wax technique. Severo da Ravenna is said to have perfected this casting process, which allows numerous versions of an original model to be reproduced with a few variations. In this way, an original made in plaster, clay, stone or metal was cast in one or more pieces, depending on the importance of the subject, and then preserved for re-use. These were used to make intermediate models in fireclay, clay or wax-coated plaster, on which the details were fashioned. There are several versions of the standing Satyr, one with a pan flute, another with a candlestick or cornucopia. Some fauns feature goat horns, others ram horns. The position of the arms could also vary. This technique also enabled the artist to design finely modeled pieces, working in wax in which the details were figured before the metal was cast. Thanks to this process, facial features, hair and areas of facial hair are extremely fine. Scientific analysis of the bronze confirms the age and origin of the piece. The composition of the bronze is virtually identical to that of Saint Christopher, preserved in the Objets d'Art department of the Musée du Louvre (inv. OA 9552), attributed to Severo da Ravenna and dated circa 1500. REFERENCES : Philippe Cros, Fondation Bemberg, Bronzes de la Renaissance italienne, ed.Somogy, Paris, 1996 Charles Avery, Studies in European Sculpture, vol. II, ed. Christie's, London, 1988. Richard Stone, Severo Calzetta da Ravenna and the indi-rectly cast bronze, the Burlington magazine, 148, 1245, 810-819, 2006 Severo da Ravenna, kneeling satyr, patinated bronze, Northern Italy, late 15th - early 16th century. Sotheby's, sale November 13, 2025, lot 32. COMPARISONS : Attributed to Severo da Ravenna, Standing Satyr, patinated bronze, Northern Italy, late 15th - early 15th century. Rome, Museo nazionale del Palazzo di Venezia, inv. PV092433 Attributed to Severo da Ravenna Standing satyr, patinated bronze, Northern Italy, early Xyr century Former Yves Saint-Laurent collection Please ask for condition reports: they are only available in French.