Basket of Fruit
sculptor
Unknown
Date19th century
Place MadeVenice, Veneto, Italy, Europe
MediumCarved limestone
Dimensions40 x 39.4 x 33.7 cm (15 3/4 x 15 1/2 x 13 1/4 in.)
ClassificationsSculpture
Credit LineIsabella Stewart Gardner Museum, Boston
Accession numberS5s40
eMuseum ID726654
EmbARK ObjectID19069
TMS Source ID6538
Last Updated8/14/24
Status
Not on viewWeb Commentary
This basket of fruit was carved out of limestone, likely in the 19th century. The sculptor used traditional tools, such as chisels, drills, rasps and files to create bunches of grapes, pomegranates, apples, and pears interspersed with foliage.
Isabella Stewart Gardner was an avid horticulturalist and displayed it in the Museum’s courtyard along with other sculptures to evoke an ancient Roman garden.
BibliographyNotesHolly Salmon, “Isabella's Delightful Stone Fruit Baskets,” Inside the Collection (blog), Isabella Stewart Gardner Museum, 20 September 2022, https://www.gardnermuseum.org/blog/isabellas-delightful-stone-fruit-baskets
ProvenanceNotesPurchased by Isabella Stewart Gardner as a pair (with museum no S5s27), from the art dealer Antonio Settini, Venice for 48 lire on 28 September 1897 through her husband, John L. Gardner, Jr. (1837–1898).
