Antiques late 19th century viennese bronze figurine sculpture owl skull book

Rare sculpture.

A small, heavy, meticulously detailed tabletop sculpture of an owl perched on a skull that rests on a thick antique tome. The most famous Viennese bronze. Made in Austria at the end of the 19th century. Bronze, casting, natural patina. Hand painted with enamel paints.

Collectible condition - luxury!

Height 8 cm. Width 5.5 cm.

There are no defects. Slight temporary paint wear. There is no restoration. No restoration work has been done. The item has not been washed or cleaned. All native!

A beautiful valuable collectible without interference. From a private collection.

"Viennese Bronze" is a unique phenomenon of European applied art of the 19th - early 20th centuries. The very definition of "Viennese bronze" appeared at the beginning of the last century as an attempt to designate the place of this important segment of collecting and studying. Undoubtedly, this is a collective name, denoting a range of works of bronze plastic art of the Austrian artistic production of the 19th - early 20th centuries.

The main applied features of Viennese bronze were the high quality of casting and embossing, which was carried out by craftsmen by hand. Masters used colored patinas and enamels, combined various techniques of execution, achieving artistic expressiveness of products. The plots of the "Viennese bronze" are diverse, entertaining and most often borrowed from life. Liveliness and artistry of execution are distinguished by images of people engaged in their craft, birds with bright plumage, animals and insects. Oriental themes occupied one of the main places in the history of Viennese bronze. A wide range of buyers were increasingly attracted by figurines of animals, pretty children, graceful girls, plants, dragonflies, moths, bugs, flies, grasshoppers, which became favorite decorations for the interior of offices, children's rooms and living rooms.

At the end of the 19th century, a number of Austrian bronze factories located in Vienna and on the Austrian-Czech border began to specialize in the "cold painting" technique. This naturalistic finish was created by painting raw bronze with several coats of special and hidden enamel paints called "dust paints", resulting in a wonderful life such as researching various models and sculptures. This process was often used while the casting was still warm, and the natural shrinkage on cooling added color permanence as it annealed the paint firmly into the metal. Since the color has not been "fired", this process is called "cold dyeing".

Transfer possible during a personal meeting in Paphos. Or secure purchase through the Etsy online store.