Image of Gallery in South Kensington
Not currently on display at the V&A
On display at Cliffe Castle Museum, Keighley

Table

1820 - 1870 (made)
Artist/Maker
Boschetti, Benedetto (maker)
Place of origin
Rome (made)

The composition of Boschetti's tabletop follows one of Michelangelo Baberi's most successful works, The Triumph of Cupid, which was highly publicised at the time (1823). It was engraved by Luigi Calamatta (1802-69) and explained with regards to the meanings behind the symbolic contents of the roundels. The central composition comes from Petrarch's description of Amor in Trionfo d'Amore which describes Cupid as being 'a cruel youth with bow in hand and arrows at his side; / nothing did he fear, therefore he wore neither mail no shield / But on his shoulders only two great wings / Of a thousand colours, otherwise he was nude.'

Sir Arthur Gilbert and his wife Rosalinde formed one of the world's great decorative art collections, including silver, mosaics, enamelled portrait miniatures and gold boxes. Arthur Gilbert donated his extraordinary collection to Britain in 1996.


Object details

Object type
Table
Parts
This object consists of 2 parts.

  • Table
  • Base
Materials and techniques
Micromosaic, gilt bronze
Mosaic Glass
Gold
Bronze
Micromosaic
Gilding
Casting
Brief description
Circular tabletop with Triumph of Cupid and the Planets, mosaic and gilt bronze, made by Benedetto Boschetti, Rome, c.1820-1870
Physical description
Circular tabletop with central micromosaic image of Cupid in a chariot drawn by four white horses, the border with symbols of the planets within foliage wreaths. The tripod pedestal base has a waisted column with a central knop and a spreading base with three legs.
Dimensions
  • Diameter: 96.5cm
  • Height: 78.7cm
Credit line
The Rosalinde and Arthur Gilbert Collection on loan to the Victoria and Albert Museum, London
Object history
Provenance: Florence Goldman, New York, 1972. Nestles, New York, 1974.
Summary
The composition of Boschetti's tabletop follows one of Michelangelo Baberi's most successful works, The Triumph of Cupid, which was highly publicised at the time (1823). It was engraved by Luigi Calamatta (1802-69) and explained with regards to the meanings behind the symbolic contents of the roundels. The central composition comes from Petrarch's description of Amor in Trionfo d'Amore which describes Cupid as being 'a cruel youth with bow in hand and arrows at his side; / nothing did he fear, therefore he wore neither mail no shield / But on his shoulders only two great wings / Of a thousand colours, otherwise he was nude.'

Sir Arthur Gilbert and his wife Rosalinde formed one of the world's great decorative art collections, including silver, mosaics, enamelled portrait miniatures and gold boxes. Arthur Gilbert donated his extraordinary collection to Britain in 1996.
Bibliographic references
  • The Great Exhibition of the Works of Industry of all Nations. Exhibition catalogue Crystal Palace. London 1851, p. 1285, cat. no. 17.
  • Barberi, Michel Angelo. Alcuni mosaici usciti dallo studio del Cavr. Michel'Angelo Barberi. Rome: Tipografia Tiberiana 1856.
  • Avery, Charles, assisted by Arthur Emperatori. Mosaics from the Gilbert Collection: summary catalogue. Exhibition catalogue Victoria & Albert Museum. London: H.M.S.O. 1975, cat. no. 39.
  • Gonzalez-Palacios, Alvar. The Art of Mosaics: Selections from the Gilbert Collection, Los Angeles (Los Angeles County Museum of Art) 1977. 143 p., ill. Cat. no. 66. ISBN: 0875870805
  • 'Los Angeles County Museum Receives Gift of Silver and Mosaics Collection', Lapidary Journal, April 1997, vol. 31, no. 1, pp. 198-201.
  • Johnson, Sammye. 'Masterful Micromosaics and Monumental Silver'. San Antonio Magazine, December 1977.
  • Gonzalez-Palacios, Alvar and Steffi Röttgen with essays by Steffi Röttgen, Claudia Przyborowski; essays and new catalogue material translated by Alla Theodora Hall. The Art of Mosaics: Selections from the Gilbert Collection. Los Angeles (Los Angeles County Museum of Art) 1982, cat. no. 72.
  • Gabriel, Jeanette Hanisee. 'Mosaic Tables in the Gilbert Collection'. The Antique Collector, vol. 60, no.11, November 1989. Fig. 3, pp. 94-97.
  • Branchetti, Maria Grazia. 'Il romanticismo a tessere'. Italian Antiques, no. 15, April 1992. [Milan]: Franco Maria Ricci, p. 85.
  • Gabriel, Jeanette Hanisee with contributions by Anna Maria Massinelli and essays by Judy Rudoe and Massimo Alfieri. Micromosaics: The Gilbert Collection. London: Philip Wilson Publishers Ltd. in association with The Gilbert Collection, 2000. 310 p., ill. Cat. no. 52, p. 109-110. ISBN 0856675113
Other numbers
  • MM 100 - Arthur Gilbert Number
  • SG 91
Collection
Metalwork Collection
Accession number
LOAN:GILBERT.895:1-2008

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Record createdJune 26, 2008
Record URL
https://collections.vam.ac.uk/item/O157720/table-boschetti-benedetto/
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