Pair of baroque handles or handles. Italy, 17th century

Pair of baroque handles. Italy, XVII century.
Gilded bronze.
Mounted on a painted steel base.
Measurements: 7,5 cm and 6,2 cm (bronzes); 16 cm (height of both with the bases).
This pair of baroque handles takes the form of two busts, one male and one female. Both follow the aesthetics of the Genoese sculptor Niccolo Roccatagliata, who worked as a sculptor in the church of San Giorgio Maggiore in Venice, where he made various bronze statuettes, as well as 28 sconces in the form of little love handles and two large candelabra. In 1633 he completed a very moving relief depicting an Allegory of the Redemption for the church of San Moses in Venice. It is not surprising, therefore, that our artist adopts the form of two putti or little love handles.