Branching Out Antiques has dated this piece to the 19th Century.
from the archives at the V & A museum.
It is numbered and signed on front and back of the socle.
Domenicho (Domenico) Brucciani (1815 -1880) was born in Lucca, Italy and migrated to England in the first half of the nineteenth century. He established a business which produced casts of sculptural works from international collections. By 1837 he owned a showroom near Covent Garden and was selling works to the British Museum and the South Kensington Museum (now the Victoria and Albert Museum). By 1857 D. Brucciani & Co. were working for the British Museum, making moulds and casts of their classical sculptures, bronzes and other pieces, to be sold commercially.
The company was successful during Brucciani's lifetime as it capitalised on the nineteenth century fashion to have plaster casts of sculptural works in the home. Following his death his business was purchased by another Italian, Joseph Caproni (1846 – 1900), who retained the name D. Brucciani & Co., and the business continued to manufacture casts, with customers including the Fitzwilliam Museum and the Museum of Classical Archaeology.
However, as demand for plaster casts declined in the twentieth century, the business failed. Consequently, it was purchased by the V&A and operated as the Department for the Sale of Casts until 1951 when it was forced to closed due to financial losses.
Height 62cm. Width 44.5cm
Branching Out Antiques has dated this piece to the 19th Century.
Decorative & country house antiques, including art and taxidermy
You can view the stock and full dealer information on the Branching Out Antiques Profile Page
BUST OF A PRINCESS BY D BRUCCIANI
