Pietro Ceccarelli, bronze and marble sculpture, newborn bust, first cry

  

Height: 18.5 cm; Width: 21 cm; Depth: 17.5 cm; Weight: 5.279 kg. Sculpture in excellent overall condition. A magnificent bronze bust rests on a solid Portoro Rosso marble base (also known in the antiques trade as Portoro di Francia or Breccia Pontificia).

This precious limestone has a deep red or purplish background, marked by bright white veins and dark, almost black inclusions, creating a splendid chromatic contrast much prized in early 20th-century sculpture. The sculpture depicts the head of a newborn captured in the spontaneous moment of crying, a work of extraordinary emotional realism and visual impact. The technique used is lost-wax casting, with a masterful cold finish and a beautiful dark period patina, with natural tones and slight traces of oxidation that enhance its relief. The sculpture rests firmly on a finely veined red marble block, securely anchored by an original visible dowel in the unfinished lower part. The decoration and sculptural modeling focus entirely on the dramatic rendering of the face: the most beautiful and important aspect to appreciate is the artist’s extraordinary ability to capture childhood expressions, visible in the deep wrinkles around the closed eyes, the furrowed brow, and the wide-open mouth that seems almost to let the child’s voice escape.

The production period is precisely in the 1920s, a time of great activity for Italian sculpture, and the place of manufacture is Italy, in one of the prestigious art foundries located between Tuscany and the capital. The work bears a handwritten signature engraved directly into the bronze, on the right shoulder, before casting, where one can clearly read “Prof. We attribute this work with certainty to the artist Pietro Ceccarelli, both for his unmistakable modeling style and for the presence of this signature, engraved clearly and precisely.

This attribution is based on direct comparison with art literature and contemporary catalogs, which confirm that this sculpture, titled “Primo Vagito,” is one of the artist’s most important works on the theme of childhood. The quality of execution is clearly superior to later or serial versions, which bear only attached labels. Useful information for evaluating the item.

The work has very high market and collector value, justified both by the excellent quality of the casting and by the artist’s strong reputation on the international art market. In the prestige antiques market and major international online galleries such as Pamono, 1stDibs, and intOndo, objects related to the “First Cries” series attract strong interest from interior designers and collectors. The fundamental difference lies in the quality of execution: the example presented here, of lower quality, has a signature affixed on a simple metal plaque, while this one features a signature engraved directly into the bronze, an element that greatly increases its authenticity, rarity, and market value, which can easily be estimated in the upper range of the gallery market. Information about the artist and/or maker. Pietro Ceccarelli, born in Montecatini in 1888 and died in 1946, was an internationally renowned Italian sculptor, able to blend the great Tuscan sculptural tradition with the expressive modern currents of the early 20th century.

Trained in Florence, he learned the art of modeling by drawing inspiration from Renaissance masters and from the luminous vibrations of Impressionist sculpture and Medardo Rosso, developing a unique style characterized by vibrant surfaces and a deep psychological exploration of his subjects. His reputation extended beyond Europe, leading him to settle in Venezuela, where he became the official sculptor of the Republic under the presidency of Juan Vicente Gómez, creating major public monuments and portraits for the country’s political and cultural elite. Throughout his career, Ceccarelli took part in numerous group and solo exhibitions in Italy and abroad, receiving significant critical recognition for his extraordinary technical mastery of marble and bronze. Today, his works are sought after for their ability to combine formal elegance with remarkable expressive power. PORCELAIN, CERAMICS, TERRACOTTA, BRONZES, PAINTINGS, FURNITURE, GLASS AND MUCH MORE SUCH AS, FOR EXAMPLE.

For each item, there may be multiple listings in different countries: the United States, Italy, France, the United Kingdom, etc. Any price differences are due only to exchange-rate variations between the different currencies at the time we listed the item and the time you view it.

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