A sculptor transformed solid marble into the delicate illusion of a veiled woman’s face; newly attributed to Antonio Corradini, the Baroque marble piece sold for a record €1.925 million at auction in Vienna, soaring past its high estimate of €16,000

Attributed to Antonio Corradini (Venice 1688–1752 Napels), Donna velata, circa 1717–1725, bust of a veiled lady, white marble, height 60 cm, set on a marble base, total height 75 cm; world-record price €1.925.000Pic credit: © Dorotheum

Your first look is all admiration. The face is calm, the lines are soft, and the veil is as translucent as it can get. The second look is accompanied by a question: how does a hard white stone turn into something that looks like cloth? By the time that question settles, you have stopped asking it. You are just standing there, a little more amazed than before.A marble sculpture of a woman wearing a veil was sold for €1.925 million (around €1.9 million) at an auction in Vienna on 20 October, setting a new world record for a work by the Italian Baroque sculptor Antonio Corradini. Several bidders in the saleroom and on the telephone tried their best to take home the highly coveted sculpture of a veiled lady, the auction house Dorotheum said.

A face under a veil

The sculpture depicts a veiled woman carved in white marble. It stands 60 centimetres tall and is set on its own base. Veiled women were Corradini’s trademark, and this piece follows that pattern. The veil falls over the face without hiding it. The marble veil looks like soft fabric, demonstrating the patience, technique and artistry that went into the carving.Corradini was born in Venice in 1688. Sculptures from his workshop reached Dresden and St Petersburg before he ever left Italy. His patrons included King Augustus the Strong and Tsar Peter the Great.Corradini later spent about a decade in Vienna as court sculptor to Emperor Charles VI. Some of his work still stands in the city. A statue of Charles VI attributed to the artist can be found in the State Hall of the Austrian National Library. The figures on the Marriage Fountain on the Hoher Markt are among his best-known works. Dorotheum now considers the veiled lady definitively attributable to Antonio Corradini.A plaster model of the same bust is kept at the Ca’ Rezzonico museum in Venice. Conservators recently restored it as part of the Save Venice project. The model gives researchers something to compare with the marble.The auction drew interest from bidders in the saleroom and on the telephone. None of those present in the room managed to take it home. “The bidding ultimately ended in favour of a telephone bidder,” the auction house said in a press release. The price of €1.925 million set a new world record for Corradini and was far above the auction house’s estimate. The sculpture had been estimated to fetch between €12,000 and €16,000. The buyer’s identity is currently unknown.The lucky buyer now owns a unique piece of art that looks lifelike. Three centuries after it was carved, the sculpture still poses the same question to anyone who looks at it closely: how did someone make marble look like cloth?