R.H. Park Marble Relief Tondo, Neoclassical Veiled Bust

North America, United States, ca. 1860–1890 CE. Carved white marble relief tondo, signed "R.H. Park / Sc." at lower left. A circular relief carved with the bust-length profile of a young woman facing right, veiled at the head and shoulders, the field recessed within a raised, canted border. The veil is drawn across the crown and falls in long, broken folds gathered at the shoulder, its weight conveyed through depth of carving. A lock of wavy hair escapes at the temple and curls before the ear. The profile follows the Neoclassical manner associated with Park's years in Florence: a straight nose continuous with the brow, a full lower lip, a firm chin, and a downcast gaze. Modeling moves from high relief at the face and veil's edge to a shallow ground at the drapery. The border retains its original claw-chisel tooling, unpolished, against the burnished field. Period frame included, probably original to the piece. Size: 18" Diam x 2" H (45.7 cm Diam x 5.1 cm H); Size of frame: 24" Diam x 3.5" H (61.0 cm Diam x 8.9 cm H).

Park trained in New York and maintained a studio in Brooklyn before establishing himself in Florence, where he worked from 1871 to 1890 and produced the portrait busts and idealized heads on which his reputation largely rests. He returned to the United States for the 1893 World's Columbian Exposition and settled in Chicago, where his bronze Columbus stands on the Drake Fountain and his Benjamin Franklin of 1896 in Lincoln Park. Signed marble reliefs by his hand appear on the market only occasionally.

Provenance: private Boulder, Colorado, USA collection by family descent; ex-James Gordon and Hazel Gordon Kaufman by descent from their father, Alexander Gerber, a New York industrialist active in the last quarter of the 20th century. New York, New York, USA.

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Item #

204213

Condition
Marble carving in excellent condition. Period frame has some separation that has been restored on the front.

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