A fine 17th century rearing horse. Attributed to the workshop of Francesco Fanelli 1577/1590 – after 1653/1657. Born in Florence, he worked in Genoa and later in London where he became Charles I’s favoured sculptor. This fine cast shows the energy and “brio” associated with the best of Fanelli’s models. The spontaneity of the mane and the expressive muzzle are particularly pleasing. Bronze alloy with a good patina. Examples of Fanelli horses can be found in the Burghley House collections, V&A, Herzog Anton Ulrich Museum, the Metropolitan museum of Art and the Fitzwilliam Museum.John Pope-Hennessy (former director of the V&A) writes of Fanelli’s enduring influence beyond sculpture too. That “Fanelli, whose statuettes are some of the earliest Baroque sculptures in circulation in this country, will prove to have been instrumental in establishing in England the vogue of Baroque portraiture”. (J. Pope-Hennessy, Some Bronze Statuettes by Francesco Fanelli, Essays on I...