This stone carving of a head is mostly gray, with darker and lighter variations of color throughout. The forehead is high but not deep. The eye sockets are deep-set and the eyeballs are bulging. Carved openings in the stone that are perpendicular to, and set back from the eyes, appear to represent the ears. The nose is flat at the top, then widens and rounds toward the tip. The nostrils are small and round. What appears to be an oversized moustache protrudes and covers the upper jaw and lip. It extends well-beyond the width of the nose, and curves in on both sides. The lower jaw and lip appear to be of normal proportion; there are wide spaces between the teeth. Below the jaw, the sculpture tapers to define the chin and then flattens at the bottom, on which the head rests. Carved pieces of stone above the forehead and down below the ears may represent a head covering.
Italian, Venice
Grotesque Stone Head,
17th century
Istrian stone
,
17.8 x 17.1 x 14 cm (7 x 6 3/4 x 5 1/2 in.)
Object details
Accession number
S8w10
Primary Creator
Italian, Venice
Full title
Grotesque Stone Head
Creation Date
17th century
Provenance
Entered Isabella Stewart Gardner's collection at an unknown date.
Dimensions
17.8 x 17.1 x 14 cm (7 x 6 3/4 x 5 1/2 in.)
Display Media
Istrian stone
Web Commentary
Isabella Stewart Gardner kept meticulous records of many of her acquisitions. In keeping with this legacy, object information is continually being reviewed, updated, and enriched in order to give greater access to the collection.
Permanent Gallery Location
Chinese Loggia
Bibliography
Cornelius C. Vermeule III et al. Sculpture in the Isabella Stewart Gardner Museum (Boston, 1977), p. 178, no. 255. (as Venetian, 17th century; incorrectly inventoried as museum no. S8w4)
Rights and reproductions
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Isabella Stewart Gardner kept meticulous records of many of her acquisitions. In keeping with this legacy, object information is continually being reviewed, updated, and enriched in order to give greater access to the collection.