Bowl with foot, images of Hercules and Apollo, Venice, 1550-1600.

Circular footed bowl or wine cooler with a moulded lip and decorated with, on the bowl, (i) fleshy acanthus on a cyma recta moulding; (ii) fruit and foliage swags with bell- shaped ends emanating from busts of females (?), which project into the acanthus border and from which are susupended horns of fruit with flying foliage; above the swags, shells containing a bust of a man with a bow on his back (probably Apollo) on cornucopiae with ribbon; two gadrooned, boat-shaped vases with fruit and foliate horns flanked by sea monsters with human heads and spiked headresses emanating from foliage forming fantastic fish, alteranted with two gadrooned vases flanked by flowers and griffins; these motifs separated by smaller figures flanked by foliage showing: Apollo playing a lira da braccio, a naked man (Apollo?) leaning against a tree, Hercules slaying the Hydra, Hercules resting, acanthus on a shallow moulding, gadrooning. On the foot foliage and fruit swags with similar pendants suspended from a fine moulding; below, flowers with figures between them showing: hercules slaying the Nemean lion, Hercules and Antaeus, Apollo leaning against a tree, Hercules slaying the Hydra, the young hercules with the snakes, Apollo playing a stringed instrument, acanthus on a cyma reversa moulding, plain moulding, guilloche.

Bought from Murray Marks, London, in 1893 for £70.

This circular footed bowl or wine cooler with a moulded lip is decorated with images largely drawn from the legends of Hercules and Apollo. It is closely related to examples in the Columbia Museum of Art, Columbia and the Bargello in Florence. It was probably produced by the Alberghetti workshop in northern Italy however it is difficulty to establish the date of the present bowl with certainty.

The collection of Italian bronzes at the Victoria and Albert Museum is the most extensive ever assembled. It ranges from sculptural groups, busts and statuettes to functional pieces such as door-knockers, bells, mortars and bowls.

736-1893