Featured Pope pius IX porcelain bust

hi folks

something else i picked up yesterday

unglazed porcelain, marked Pius IX, though thought it looked more like the other fella,john paul II

not really sure if its touristy or not or age

being made of porcelain would think it was a step up from a resin type

can't find one the same

impressed numbers on base

any thoughts or info appreciated

 

better with a darker background

 

Very nice bust. This looks like Pius IX in his later years, after he had lost the Churchly States to the newly found state of Italy.

So probably a good quality souvenir of the Vatican, the kind that would have been bought on the Grand Tour. There have always been souvenir shops in and around the Vatican.

 

thats great news, and makes total sense, thanks Aj

 

Definitely not Jean Paul II. He had a much rounder head and face. His memorabilia crops up quite a bit round these parts after the 1982 visit. Ubiquitous, like Dark Side of the Moon albums. Seems like only yesterday. My parents aren't even religious. Just one of those things that every one went to.

Here's a younger version with an apple. Nom

https://www.southdublinauction.com/...-auction-with-a-170-lots-of-art-from-lot-119/

 

i'd be more than happy with lots of dark side of the moon albums, all i seem to find nowadays are musicals and lately cliff richards albums everywhere. iTs like all the old dears have disowned him ?

 

He's strung them along for far too long. Maybe they should have listened to his lyrics. Never really dabbled in vinyl.

 

There are even a ton of cameos of Pius IX.

 

Think it could be considered Parian ware.

 

its rather effective in a cameo and didn't think it would be, kind of perfect for a cameo though given that natural white coming through

parian would be a great term if correct, didn't know if it quite qualifies

 

Definitely looks like bisque. Not sure when bisque is classed as parian?

 

probably of it being English and made around that victorian period i reckon, but the term is probably loosely used with things that just look similar

 

As a non-specialist, if I saw something described as Parian ware, I would know to expect it to look like Parian marble, even though experts might reserve that term for the productions of specific makers. Similar to the way Jasper Ware may have been coined by Wedgwood, but you would understand what was meant if applied to pottery by another maker.

 

Ahh got ya, didn't realize there was a Parian marble, but that makes perfect sense

 

Here's the cameo version of him that I have. It's from around the 1860s, likely after a medallion image.



The guy who sold it to me cheaply said "It's a Pope. That's all I know."

Pius IX was actually a patron of cameo carvers (and other arts) and paid to send pieces done by master carver Tommaso Saulini to the Great Exposition. There Queen Victoria saw his work and commissioned cameos for her badges for The Order of Victoria and Albert.