AN UNUSUAL CARVED MARBLE VULTUS TRIFRONS OR THREE FACED CAPITAL, IN THE ITALIAN 15TH CENTURY STYLE

AN UNUSUAL CARVED MARBLE VULTUS TRIFRONS OR THREE FACED CAPITAL IN THE ITALIAN 15TH CENTURY STYLECarved in the round with three faces of a young man, conjoined with curling hair, on a later composition support and simulated Breccia marble base22cm high overall, base 10.5cm wide Earliest examples of tricephalic, trifrons or three headed carvings in Western art are found in the Gallo-Roman period where representations of the Celtic god Luggus (or Lugh) typically depict a conjoined set of three faces- sharing just two pairs of eyes. Carvings with three separate faces are found in Roman depictions of the Goddess Hecate and in later 14th century Italian sculpture- most notably the trifons vultus allegorical of Prudence attributed to the Florentine artists Pacio and Giovanni Bertini (Ex Robert Lehman Collection- now in the Met Museum). Other capitals, perhaps emblematic of the Three Ages of Man are known, and trifrons in ecclesiastical settings perhaps symbolic of The Trinity can be seen in French and Spanish churches.Condition Report: Aged, weathered, worn, knocks, consistent with age. Granulated surface.One long crack.Filler to base. Condition Report Disclaimer