Marble capital made in North Italy (Venice), ca. 1200-1250

The corners of the capital are formed by four eagles (or possibly doves) with wings outstretched and heads bent upwards and back. Above is a square moulding decorated on each side with rosettes, beneath which runs a strip of acanthus. The capital is chipped in places and the heads of the birds are badly damaged.

The provenance of this capital is unknown, and it is not possible at present to be sure of its place of origin.

Bought from Dr W.L. Hildburgh in London, 1929. Previously in the E.P. Warren Sale, Sotheby's (London), 31st May 1929, lot 38.

Historical significance: Francesco Negri Arnoldi considered the capital to be 'un prodotto d'arte tardogotica, modellato forse su esemplari classici' - A product of late gothic art possibly modelled on a classical example.

In his catalogue of Romanesque Sculpture in the Victoria & Albert Museum, Williamson notes that capitals of this type are found throughout Northern Italy: in Venice, Milan, Barga, Pistoia, Gropina and elsewhere in the region. Pope-Hennessy describes it as being "clearly of Venetian origin" and dates the object to the last quarter of the twelfth-century.
Williamson notes similarities to a capital, said to have come from Venice, with a more stylised acanthus strip at the bottom (now in the Bode museum) in Berlin, but suggests that the capital is closest in style to one in the cathedral cloister at Pistoia. He suggests that the present capital is later than both these examples on the basis of the finer detail and more delicate carving and proposes a date of the first quarter of the thirteenth century.

The birds are either doves or eagles, both animals with Christian associations. This capital is made of marble. Marble was commonly used for prestigious sculptural elements in the churches of Italy and southern France in the 12th and 13th centuries.

A.92-1929