18th Volterra Alabaster “The Rape of the Sabine” Large Sculptural Group

“The Rape of the Sabine Women”, veined alabaster, large sculptural group with a classical subject, Volterra manufacture, 18th century.

The so-called Rape of the Sabine Women is a sculptural group by Giambologna, which is part of the Grand Ducal furnishings of the Loggia dei Lanzi in Piazza della Signoria in Florence. The group is 4.10 meters high (the dimensions of the sculptures grew a lot, after Michelangelo had sculpted the David) and represents a young man who lifts a girl above his head, while an old man, stuck between the legs of the young man, despairs; for this reason the statue is also known as “The Three Ages of Man”.

The sculpture, both for the classical subject and for the type of material in which it was made, leads back to the Volterra area, where the Officina Inghirami was active between 1791 and 1799. The Tuscan town of Volterra, cradle of the Etruscan Civilization, has always been considered an illustrious point of reference for the extraction and processing of alabaster: a changeable, delicate, shiny and elegant material. Recognized as the most valuable in Europe, it is present in the territory in the form of open-air quarries or tunnels and dates back to a period between 26 and 7 million years ago. Each quarry generates a type of alabaster that is different in appearance and consistency based on the chemical composition of the soil: consequently, the varieties less rich in inclusions are white and transparent, while the inclusions of clay and metal oxides produce alabasters that are generally gray with veins. On the contrary, the amber, yellow and reddish colors are due to metal oxides and hydroxides, primarily iron.

A specimen very similar to ours appears in the Catalog of Italian Cultural Heritage, exhibited in the Museum of the Medici Villa of Poggio a Caiano. The card states that another identical group is preserved in Palazzo Pitti.

Measurements

H cm 64
L max cm 27
D max cm 22
Socle cm 22.5 x 18.5