Note: Giacomo Raffaelli (1753-1836) trained as a sculptor and painter but by 1775 he was already known for his work in micromosaic, a medium which he is credited with advancing.  Through the work of the chemist Alessio Mattiloi, Raffaelli was able to create tiny tesserae made from spun enamel of extremely fine quality which allowed for the creation of complex compositions.  Working from both his studio in the Piazza di Spagna and the Vatican workshops in Rome, his gallery became a place of pilgrimage for sophisticated European aristocrats on their Grand Tour.

Following the French occupation of Rome in 1797, Raffaelli transferred his workshop to the Milanese Court of Eugene Bonaparte.  However, the collapse of the Court in Milan saw Raffaelli return to Rome between 1815-20, and set up his flourishing workshop in the via del Babuino.

Alongside his intricate and acclaimed micromosaics, Raffaelli was also fascinated with the mineral world and was a highly accomplished lapidary artist, using sophisticated combinations of marbles, jaspers and semi-precious stones such as lapis lazuli, amethyst and malachite to create stunning table tops.  The present lot can be almost certainly be attributed to Raffaelli combining as it does his genius in the techniques of both micromosaic and hardstone in a beautiful, harmonious design.

The central circular scene in the micromosaic of the present lot with a chaffinch guarding its nest of eggs from a mouse can be directly compared with one of a pair of panels by Raffaelli sold by Sotheby’s, Pelham, The Public and the Private, 8 March 2016, lot 142, with provenance to Hamilton Palace, showing an identical scene alongside a second panel with a goldfinch and a serpent.  Further comparisons can also be drawn to a plaque in the Hermitage Museum, St Petersburg, and another in the Palazzo Borromeo, Borromeo Islands.  In all three of these panels the tree is lacking a further trunk on the far left which is part of the design of the present lot.  In addition, there is an inkwell in the Wallace Collection, London, which includes a medallion of the same picture but lacking the nest of eggs.  Close examination reveals in all these examples, including the present lot, Raffaelli’s trademark device to outline his birds and animals with white, rectilinear tesserae.

The rich range of specimen marbles in the present lot can be compared with a table by Raffaelli sold Sotheby’s, Kentshire, New York, 18 October 2014, lot 156, with provenance to The Hon. John and Lady Augusta Kennedy-Erskine; and also a table at Trinity College, Cambridge, Fitzwilliam Museum (Massinelli op.cit p. 298).  A further table, not fully attributed to Raffaelli, is at Ickworth House, Suffolk, and displays the same arrangement of specimen marbles surrounding a central micromosaic of The Doves of Pliny (NT 850351).  The outer border with a band of verde antico marble in both the Kennedy-Erskine and Ickworth House table tops are identical to the present lot.

While the base of the current table appears to be a later association, the ornamental scheme of the top combining a stunning lapidary palette with the intricate micromosaic can be attributed to the distinctive production of Raffaelli.