SQUARE PIETRA DURA TABLETOP. MARBLE AND HARDSTONES.

Square tabletop. Marbles and hard stones. Inspired by Italian models from the 16th and 17th centuries. A pearl necklace with a bow is placed in the center of the board against a black background. It is surrounded by an area of vegetal scrolls, flowers, and perched birds, framed by a band of simplified scrolls. Outside, in the corners, eight fish face each other in pairs, each holding a ball and a crown, and are positioned on an architectural motif, visually connected by vegetal scrolls. This marquetry, called "hardstone work," which uses colored marbles and stones with a hardness greater than 6 on the Mohs scale, originated in Florence, thanks to the attempt by Piero de' Medici and Lorenzo the Magnificent to revitalize and update a mosaic technique called "opus sectile" used in Ancient Rome. It was so successful in European courts that, from the 17th century onwards, a series of workshops were established following their example, among which the Gobelins Manufactory in France, the Royal Workshop of Naples, and the one established by Charles III at the Royal Palace of El Buen Retiro in Madrid, which remained in operation until the beginning of the 19th century, stand out. Stylistically, they began with a striking variety of motifs, but, from around 1600, naturalistic themes (flowers, fruits, butterflies, birds, etc.) were generally preferred. Tabletops, plaques, desks, vases, etc. were made using this technique, always for the high aristocracy and royalty due to the very high prices of these works, due to the high specialization required since, very often, it was necessary to import the raw material (lapis lazuli, agates, Belgian black marble was usually for the backgrounds…). The present example is heir to this important tradition, whose influence is demonstrated by comparing it with works such as those of the Opificio delle Pietre Dure in Florence, the Roman panel from towards the end of the 16th century (inventory 62.259) of the Metropolitan Museum of New York, or the one made in Naples by Francesco Ghinghi around the middle of the 18th century (inventory O00511) preserved in the Prado Museum in Madrid.

· Size: 90x90 cms.