This walnut panel is highly carved with vegetal motifs arranged in regular patterns of openings and holes. The panel is vertically symmetrical, and has a circle, made by a convoluted stalk, positioned in its center. The inside of the circle contains a flower bud surrounded by small leaves. Two tulip-like flowers stem at the bottom of the circle, and rise on either side of it. The rest of the composition is formed by complex, scroll-like stems adorned with leaves. The leaves are generally displayed from a side view, with the exception of two which are displayed flat, and positioned next to the side edge, on either side of the panel. The various stems and stalks are intertwined in a regular but naturalistic fashion. The overall carving maintains a coherent composition, a flowing rhythm, and a homogeneous agglomeration of vegetal motifs. The panel is displayed in a wide, plain, gilded wood frame.
Italian, Central Italy
Carved Grill (Pannello Traforato),
about 1680-1700
Gilded walnut
,
97.8 x 180.8 x 6.8 cm (38 1/2 x 71 3/16 x 2 11/16 in.)
Object details
Accession number
S21e21
Primary Creator
Italian, Central Italy
Full title
Carved Grill (Pannello Traforato)
Creation Date
about 1680-1700
Provenance
Entered Isabella Stewart Gardner's collection by 1910.
Dimensions
97.8 x 180.8 x 6.8 cm (38 1/2 x 71 3/16 x 2 11/16 in.)
Display Media
Gilded walnut
Web Commentary
Elaborately carved with ribbons, leaves and two tulips on long stalks, this Baroque screen lacks any religious symbolism, yet similar designs by Filippo Passarini (1638-1698) confirm its original function as an altar frontal or railing.
Permanent Gallery Location
Dutch Room
Bibliography
Gilbert Wendel Longstreet and Morris Carter. General Catalogue (Boston, 1935), p. 196.
Fausto Calderai and Alan Chong. Furnishing a Museum: Isabella Stewart Gardner’s Collection of Italian Furniture (Boston, 2011), p. 196, no. 81.
Rights and reproductions
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Elaborately carved with ribbons, leaves and two tulips on long stalks, this Baroque screen lacks any religious symbolism, yet similar designs by Filippo Passarini (1638-1698) confirm its original function as an altar frontal or railing.