GIUSEPPE VACCA (ITALIAN, 1803-1871): A LARGE WHITE MARBLE FIGURE OF PSYCHE OF CAPUA OR 'APHRODITE', AFTER THE ANTIQUE signed and dated 'G. Vacca In Napoli 1861' 95cm high, base 39.5cm wide PROVENANCE: Private collection of a British sculptor. Purchased in 2006 from John Wiseman's Architectural Antiques, London. This large white marble figure is a copy of an ancient Roman marble, thought to be a copy of a Greek Original produced c.350-330 BC and possibly by Scopas, excavated in the 18th century at the amphitheatre of Capua. The figure is thought to represent Psyche, and it has been suggested that the smooth surface to the side of the figure indicates that it was once joined with another, possibly that of Eros. It may simply have been that when the original was carved, the sculptor used separate pieces of marble which are now lost, and so the present figure is a direct copy of the sculpture recovered in Capua. Alternatively the figure could possibly have been part of a pediment, which would also explain why it was carved in this manner.