The Romanelli were a family of highly prolific sculptors in Florence during the 19th century. Born in 1856, Raffaelo Romanelli (d.1928), the son of Pasquale, exhibited in the major Italian salons as well as in Paris and London. The workshop of Raffaelo and his son Romano continued the lofty reputation first established by Pasquale. Raffaello's chief works are the equestrian statue of Garibaldi in Siena, and the Charles Albert monument in the Quirinal, Rome. His works, mainly genre, historical and classical scenes, can now be found in museums such as the Palazzo Pitti in Florence.
Here the sculptor depicts the renowned Renaissance painter Rafael with his muse and mistress La Fornarina (the baker; identified in the 19th century as Margarita Luti), with allusion no doubt to the series of five works of the same subject by Jean-August-Dominique Ingres completed between 1813 and the painter’s death in 1867.
The present scene may clearly be seen as a continuation of Romanelli’s historical works with reference to the popular troubadour style, however it is also interesting to speculate that the skilled sculptor was also attempting to create a conscious link between the himself and the great Italian masters before him. Note a comparable model within his oeuvre – the charming model of Michelangelo in his work ‘Young Michelangelo Carving a Faun’s Head’, an example of which sold Christie’s, New York, 17 October 2017, lot 211 (£21,250). Another version of the present model only slightly smaller in scale sold Christie's, New York, 23 October 2018, lot 150 ($47,500).