chocolate brown patina beneath dark brown lacquer

Both with chocolate brown patina beneath dark brown/black lacquer. Some pitting. Lacquer flaking. Standard surface abrasions. Minor standard plugs and casting flaws. Implement in Nessus's proper right hand is lacking. His quiver is loose. Small casting crack on one base. Bases may be associated (possibly with one cast from the other). Attractive.
In response to your inquiry, we are pleased to provide you with a general report of the condition of the property described above. Since we are not professional conservators or restorers, we urge you to consult with a restorer or conservator of your choice who will be better able to provide a detailed, professional report. Prospective buyers should inspect each lot to satisfy themselves as to condition and must understand that any statement made by Sotheby's is merely a subjective qualified opinion.
NOTWITHSTANDING THIS REPORT OR ANY DISCUSSIONS CONCERNING CONDITION OF A LOT, ALL LOTS ARE OFFERED AND SOLD "AS IS" IN ACCORDANCE WITH THE CONDITIONS OF SALE PRINTED IN THE CATALOGUE.

RELATED LITERATURE

J. Pope-Hennessy, 'Some Bronze Statuettes by Francesco Fanelli', reprinted in Essays on Italian Sculpture, New York and London, 1968, pp. 166-1
U. Berger and V. Krahn, Bronzen der Renaissance und des Barock: Katalog der Sammlung. Herzog Anton Ulrich-Museum Braunschweig, Braunschweig, 1994, pp. 135, 138-139, no. 99
P. Wengraf, "Franceso Fanelli & Sons in Italy and London, on a Grander Scale," in European Bronzes from the Quentin Collection (exh.cat.), ed. by M. Leithe-Jasper & P. Wengraf, The Frick Collection, New York 2004, p. 33, no﷽. 26

Francesco Fanelli (1577-after 1657), was an Italian sculptor who worked at the court of Charles I of England in the early 17th century. Pope-Hennessy notes 🔯in his systematic study of Fanelli's bronzes in 1953 that the Italian sculptor exe🍨cuted a number of small bronzes for Charles I and the Duke of Newcastle.

Fanelli created two different treatments of the subject Nessus and Deianira, both of which are represented in the present lot: one in which Deianira revolts against her abductor, and the other in which she accepts her fate.  A group of 'A Centaur and A Deianira' was first recorded in the inventory of sculptures belonging to George Villiers, Duke of Buckingham, at Buckingham House, Chelsea, on 11 May 1635.  In the 18th century, George Vertue, in his celebrated n𒁃otebooks on British art of the period, recorded 'a centaur with a woman' by Fanelli in the Earl of Oxford's collection at Welbeck; which of the two versions are described in these entries is unclear.

Further casts of the second co♈mposition include on🃏e in the Victoria and Albert Museum (A6-1953), and one in the Royal Ontario Museum, Toronto (L971.23.10).