A very good late 19th century Italian alabaster model of a bull. Well modelled standing on a plinth.
c. 1880
Alabaster is a name applied to varieties of two distinct minerals, when used as a material: gypsum (a hydrous sulfate of calcium) and calcite, a carbonate of calcium, also known as onyx-marble, Egyptian alabaster or Oriental alabaster, in geological terms is "a stalagmitic limestone marked with patterns of swirling bands of cream and brown". In general, but not always, ancient Alabaster in Egypt and the Near & Middle East is calcite. Alabaster in medieval Europe is gypsum.
Height14.00 inch(35.6 cm)
Width18.00 inch(45.7 cm)
Depth8.00 inch(20.3 cm)
Ref No. 6296