I first saw this fabulous figure when it came to auction in spring 2011. At 19.5 inches in height, she is hard to miss! I wrote about her on this blog then for several reasons. First, she is gorgeous; second, she is unrecorded; third, I had no idea who she was and hoped one of my readers might supply the answer; and fourth, she has a maker’s mark, WEDGWOOD & CO. not otherwise recorded on a figure.
Figures marked WEDGWOOD are believed to have been made by Ralph Wedgwood, a nephew of Josiah Wedgwood, who operated his own manufactory. But rather than being marked WEDGWOOD in the manner of nearly all Ralph Wedgwood's other marked figures, this figure is marked WEDGWOOD & CO. Ralph Wedgwood is thought to have used this very mark for the brief period that he worked at a pottery in Knottingley, West Yorkshire--although it is possible that he also used it after 1788 at his Burslem pot bank.
This beautiful figure sold at auction in 2011, and, although I had no idea who bought it, I did not forget it. In 2017, it re-appeared at auction, and I was tempted. We didn’t own any figures approaching this in size, but I have always admired large classical figures and consider a big figure of Fortitude marked WEDGWOOD that I added to a private collection particularly fine--much finer than its Enoch Wood counterpart--so I toyed with the idea of going after this large lady. But where was I to put her in our modestly sized house? Having decided that if all else failed, she could sit her at the end of my desk or on the marble surround of my bathtub, I was emboldened to give her a try, so I took a deep breath and did it.
Ahead of the auction, my savvy collector friend Bob Carde and I exchanged emails, and Bob, who is a super-sleuth with a genius for tracking down design sources, correctly suggested the figure portrays the marble figure known as Farnese Flora.
This beautiful figure sold at auction in 2011, and, although I had no idea who bought it, I did not forget it. In 2017, it re-appeared at auction, and I was tempted. We didn’t own any figures approaching this in size, but I have always admired large classical figures and consider a big figure of Fortitude marked WEDGWOOD that I added to a private collection particularly fine--much finer than its Enoch Wood counterpart--so I toyed with the idea of going after this large lady. But where was I to put her in our modestly sized house? Having decided that if all else failed, she could sit her at the end of my desk or on the marble surround of my bathtub, I was emboldened to give her a try, so I took a deep breath and did it.
Ahead of the auction, my savvy collector friend Bob Carde and I exchanged emails, and Bob, who is a super-sleuth with a genius for tracking down design sources, correctly suggested the figure portrays the marble figure known as Farnese Flora.
Reduced-scale copy of Farnese Flora at Stourhead, Wiltshire.
Farnese Flora has quite a story. This colossal Roman marble statue entered modern history in 1540, when she was found in Rome--or at least her body was, for her head, arms, feet, and plinth are relatively modern additions. She was placed in an unrestored condition in the Palazzo Faranese in Rome, alongside a statue of a female figure holding fruit and flowers. The two ladies were thought to be muses, but the figure with the fruit and flowers was renamed Flora. Then, some time between 1550 and 1561, the damaged figure was restored to be Flora too--the "logic" was that the pair of Floras would stand as companions to a pair of Hercules figures in the palace’s courtyard. Either at that time or at a somewhat later date, restorers retooled one side of the chiton to expose the right breast, creating a sensual affects that enhanced the statue’s erotic appeal. Eighteenth-century critics later suggested the restoration as Flora had been incorrect and speculated that the figure should have been one of the Muses or Hours, or perhaps Hope, or Victory, but faced with no convincing evidence, Flora she remained.
Today Flora can be seen in Naples’s Museo Nazionale, still known as Farnese Flora but described as a Roman copy of a Greek marble of Aphrodite. Over the centuries, Farnese Flora has been much admired for her proverbial beauty, and in particular the exquisite drapery. At around eleven feet tall, her grace and delicacy contrast sharply with her enormity. She has been drawn and copied at reduced scales in materials as varied as ivory, terracotta, marble, lead, and bronze. Most famous is John Michael Rysbrack’s life-size marble copy created in the eighteenth century for the Pantheon at Stourhead.
Today Flora can be seen in Naples’s Museo Nazionale, still known as Farnese Flora but described as a Roman copy of a Greek marble of Aphrodite. Over the centuries, Farnese Flora has been much admired for her proverbial beauty, and in particular the exquisite drapery. At around eleven feet tall, her grace and delicacy contrast sharply with her enormity. She has been drawn and copied at reduced scales in materials as varied as ivory, terracotta, marble, lead, and bronze. Most famous is John Michael Rysbrack’s life-size marble copy created in the eighteenth century for the Pantheon at Stourhead.
 Courtesy Woolley & Wallis. | Of interest to ceramics collectors are the soft-paste porcelain figures of Farnese Flora that the Bow factory made in the 1760-65 period, after a reduced plaster that may have derived from the terracotta model Rysbrack’ created for his Stourhead statue. Perhaps the Bow figure or a plaster guided and inspired Ralph Wedgwood’s work. |
Today, Farnes Flora looks quite different, and, to my mind, her beauty has faded. That’s because in around 1796 her restored body parts were replaced, and she acquired a new and different head. Also, her left arm and hand holding a garland were replaced; the new hand, positioned differently, now holds a posy, which looks quite awkward.
Farnese Flora as she looks today, with yet another head and arm.
The irony of my purchase does not escape me. A perfectionist by nature, I am far too picky about restoration, which, if necessary must be both ethical and correct. My Wedgwood Farnese Flora is in unrestored condition, but, at heart she is a copy of a statue that is not only restored but also reworked. Add to that, the statue is, at best, a Roman copy of a Greek statue. In two thousand years, will collectors want restored and reworked Asian copies of the Staffordshire figures that currently dot the market? I hope not!
Today, our Farnese Flora resides happily in our home, and I remain puzzled that she has gone through auction, probably many times, without anyone pinning a name to her. You might expect auction house “experts” to have had some awareness of her form, which was so celebrated in its day that umpteen images of Farnese Flora adorn the decorative arts landscape.
Today, our Farnese Flora resides happily in our home, and I remain puzzled that she has gone through auction, probably many times, without anyone pinning a name to her. You might expect auction house “experts” to have had some awareness of her form, which was so celebrated in its day that umpteen images of Farnese Flora adorn the decorative arts landscape.
