Doccia Commedia Dell'Arte Harlequin

This is an amazing and very rare figurine made by Doccia in about 1755. It is one of the figures from probably the most famous group of figurines int he world of porcelain - the commedia dell'arte or Italian comedy which is definitely a favorite of mine. The figure here is of Harlequin ( Arlecchino ) who is the best-known of the zanni or comic servant characters from the Italian commedia dell arte. The Harlequin is characterized by his chequered costume and his role is that of a light-hearted, nimble, and astute servant, often acting to thwart the plans of his master, and pursuing his own love interest, Columbina, with wit and resourcefulness, often competing with the sterner and melancholic Pierrot. The figure is superbly modeled with the typical colorful shirt and pants and the club in his hand while standing on a typical very early doccia base with colorful scrolls. As early as they come and as rare and fun as they get! He displays nicely but as one would expect there is damage. He was broken in half through part of the waist and then across the other top leg. The tip of his club is missing and there is damage to the side of the base and a line to the udnerside which crept up one side. Nothing too bad and would be a fairly easy job for a good restorer which I will probably have done since he is definitely worth the time and money involved in that! The figurine is unmarked which is not unusual except for the incised number 4 underneath as shown! The figure is 4 inches tall, 1.875 inches wide and 1.625 inches deep. Please email me for more information or other pictures.