Vase
by SOLDANI BENZI, Massimiliano, Black marble, gilded silver and bronze, height 80 cm
This vase of black touchstone (black marble of Belgium) is one of a group of four, made for Grand Prince Ferdinando between 1689 and 1693. The handles are formed by a putto cast in bronze and gilded, which embraces a swan made of a plate of silver. The elegant naturalism of the foliage on the top of the urn and at the four corners of the base is typical of Soldani Benzi’s style.