A Fine Terracotta Bust of Flora, 19th century

Attributed to Gustav Eberlein (1847-1926)
Terracotta, on integral socle
Inscribed/dated on left shoulder: 'G. E. 1876' with old inventory number ‘65’
19.5 cm. / 7 ¾ ins high

This diminutive yet captivating bust of a classical young subject wearing a garland of flowers is a fine example of terracotta modelling on a small scale, exhibiting stylistic influences from both nineteenth-century Neoclassical and eighteenth-century Rococo sculpture.

There is no obvious antique or modern prototype for the present bust; this, together with the fact that it is inscribed and dated, indicates that it was created as an original work of art, rather than being a copy of another work or after the antique. The garland of flowers, elaborate all’antica hairstyle and idealised facial features would suggest that this bust shows a female in the guise of a classical goddess, such as Flora, the Roman goddess of Spring.

Although the author cannot be confirmed with full confidence, the initial ‘G.E.’ suggests a tentative attribution to the German Romantic sculptor Gustav Eberlein (1847-1926), who studied in Rome in the early 1870s and whose mature works, such as his Boy with a Thorn (1879-86, Alte Nationalgalerie, Berlin) demonstrate both classical training and Rococo influences.

RELATED LITERATURE:
Adolf Rosenberg, 'Eberlein'. Bielefeld and Leipzig, 1903, pp. 4-5, figs 1-2