25. A Neapolitan refreshment bucket from the Herculaneum service, Real Fabbrica Ferdinandea, circa 1780-82 A Naples, Real Fabbrica Ferdinandea cooler from the "Servizio Ercolanese," circa 1780-82 Decorated with a continuous scene of classical figures after the Excavations and taken from the prints published in Le Antichità di Ercolano Esposte, set against a naturalistic landscape including a temple and ruin architecture, decorated with moulded rim of scrollwork alternated with vignettes of birds in two-tone gilding, the rim with moulded heads of caryatids, the rim with a title in red script: MUS.ERCOL.SERIE DEI BRONZI VASO DI CORNELLAE SCHELIDONI.SERIE DI PITTURE IL BASSARO O SABADIO, with its original ormolu mounts with three winged griffins, 20cm. high, (two cracks running through the side) Provenance Charles III, King of Spain (1716-1788) The Servizio Ercolanese is one of the most famous services produced by the Real Fabbrica Ferdinandea, right at the beginning of its existence. The cooler was listed in September 1782 by Domenico Venuti, director of the factory, in his description of the service given by the King of Naples and the Two Sicilies, Ferdinand IV to his father Charles III of Spain: "Rinfrescatoio piccolo n. 2 Fig. rap. la Sacra Pompa di Bacco" [Small cooler n. 2 rep. the sacred rite of Bacchus]. Both principal painters of the service, Giacomo Milani and Antonio Cioffi, accompanied the service to Madrid in 1782, where it was presented to the Spanish king. The decoration of the service was based on the newly discovered Triclinium of the Villa Cicerone in Herculaneum (see Turin, 2007, p.63). Most of these sources were derived from the highly influential publications of the findings of the excavations by the Royal Court under the title "Le Antichità di Ercolano Esposte," as published between 1757-1798 by the Stamperia Reale or Royal Printing Press. In her landmark 1986 publication on the Real Fabbrica Ferdinandea, Angela Caròla-Perrotti argues that the service was intended by Venuti to show the continuation between the ancien régime of Charles III, and that of his son, Ferdinand IV (p. 327). For Venuti, there was a personal interest; from 1740 onwards his father, Marcello Venuti, had been director of the Archaeological projects responsible for the excavations and indeed publication of the many volumes of 'Le Antichità di Ercolano Esposte'. Domenico Venuti himself, besides being director of the Real Fabbrica, was appointed Director General of the Excavations of the Kingdom. The service would have been completed with a series of twelve busts modelled by Filippo Tagliolini, all in biscuit, again taken from famous sculptures from the collection of Antiquities, now kept in the Museo Archeologico in Naples. Pieces from this service come to the market only very rarely and few are kept in private collections. For an ice pail from the same service see Angela Caròla-Perrotti, Fascination of Fragility, 2010, p. 323. A soup-tureen from this service was sold at Christie's London, 7 July 1997, lot 286 and the companion soup-tureen on 13 March 1989, lot 44. A plate from the service was sold by Christie's London on 27 April 1995, lot 144, two ice pails were sold at Sotheby's New York, 23 October 2004, lot 6, and a biscuit bust from the service was sold at Sotheby's Milan, 19 December 2006, lot 341. Most recently three pieces, including a plate, from this service were sold at Sotheby's, The collection of Giovanni & Gabriella Barilla, 14 March 2012, lots 228, 233 and 234. Another rare plate from the service was sold in these Rooms, 17 June 2015, lot 37.