Two Vienna groups of children, circa 1760

The first modelled as blacksmiths with a child sharpening an arrow and another operating the grindstone set on rockwork, the second group emblematic of Sculpture, one child working on a female bust with chisel and hammer, another boy working on a small figure in his hands, 20.6cm and 22.5cm high, shield marks in blue and underglaze-blue, incised mark and impressed star marks (some restoration)

Provenance :
Anon. sale, Phillips London, 29 January 1975, lot 113 (the first);
Ernst Blumka (1886-1969), Vienna (to 1938) and London, thence by descent (the second);
Eveline Newgas Collection, London

The second group is part of a series of allegories of the Arts, depicting children at various pursuits. It also included groups emblematic of Astronomy, Music and Painting. For another example of this model, see E. Sturm-Bednarczyk/E. Sladek, Zeremonien - Feste - Kostüme (2010), no. 262, p. 186.