Beschreibung:

Garden Sculpture:Circle of Jan Pieter van Bauerscheit: A carved gritstone group of Chronos Clipping the Wings of Youth Low Countries^ early 18th century on later carved stone pedestal the group 140cm.; 55ins high by 110cm.; 43ins wide; overall 254cm.; 100ins high by 147cm.; 58ins wide Jan Pieter van Bauerscheit the Elder^ born Wormersdorf in 1669^ architect and sculptor^ lived and worked in Antwerp where he was buried in the church of Saint Waudru in 1728. In 1691 he is recorded as a pupil of Peter Scheemaeckers the Elder and in 1694-5 registered in the guild of Saint Luke as a Master. Baurscheit was appointed assistant director of the Antwerp Mint (1709)^ sculptor to the King (1714-1715) and sculptor to the Emperor (1717). He established one of the leading workshops in Antwerp which was continued after his death by his son Jan Pieter Van Bauerscheit the Younger (1699-1768). Many of van Baurscheits works^ often carved in hard gritstone were of mythological subjects heavy with symbolism and often with a didactic or moral meaning. In this instance^ the loss of youth is personified by Chronos^ the father of time^ clipping the wings of the youthful Cupid^ as a Memento Mori |remember (that you have) to die|. Typical of the Dutch Calvinism of the time^ groups such as this would be seen as a means of perfecting the character^ by cultivating detachment and other virtues^ and turning the attention towards the immortality of the soul and the afterlife.They were particularly popular in the Netherlands^ where they decorated the town houses and country seats of its wealthy merchant population. Similar gritstone mythological groups may be seen in the Rijksmuseum^ Amsterdam VERY HEAVY - PUT NOTE IN CATALOGUE