{"product_id":"couchant-lion-with-paws-over-the-edge-marble-statue-105cm","title":"Couchant Lion With Paws Over the Edge Marble Statue - 105cm","description":"\u003ch3\u003eDescription\u003c\/h3\u003e\u003cp\u003eA lion lies couchant with its head up and facing forward, resting on crossed forepaws that project out past the front edge of its plinth. The mane is cut in tight combed locks laid in overlapping rows, the brows and eyes are incised sharply, and the tail curls round the haunch and along the flank. It lies on a rectangular plinth with a stepped base. The marble is white with faint grey veining across the plinth.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003ch2\u003ePaws Carved Past the End of the Base\u003c\/h2\u003e\u003cp\u003eThe crossed forepaws on this lion overhang the plinth, which means the front of the carving has nothing underneath it. Stone is strong in compression and weak in bending, so an unsupported projection is where a piece breaks - not usually in service, but in the workshop while it is being moved and turned. The paws are therefore left as a solid squared mass until the very end of the carving, and the plinth is cut longer than the finished dimension and trimmed back only once the paws are complete, so there is material under them for as long as possible. The toes and the crossing are separated last, working from the outside in.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eThe head on this lion faces straight out over the paws rather than turning to the side, so it is composed to be met head-on and loses its expression from an angle. That makes it a doorstep, threshold or step-head piece: one either side of an entrance, or centred at the top of a short flight. At 105cm along the plinth it sits below knee height and is looked down on, and the head is tilted up to account for that, so the face still reads from standing. The overhanging paws want a clean edge to project over - a step nosing or a plinth top rather than loose gravel.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003ch2\u003eA Forward-Facing Head at Doorstep Height\u003c\/h2\u003e\u003cp\u003eNine to eleven weeks. The plinth and its stepped base are cut first, deliberately long at the head end. The animal is roughed lying on it, and the forepaws are blocked out as one squared mass that stays intact through the whole of the rest of the work. The mane is next: the locks here are combed rather than tousled and laid in overlapping rows, so they are cut row by row from the outermost inward, each row establishing the depth for the one behind it. Brows, lids and eyes are incised after the mane is clear. Only then are the paws separated and the plinth trimmed back to its finished length. Nothing is pinned or filled - animal and plinth come from one block. Our main studios are in the UK (Birmingham) and Dubai, with additional global workshops. Around 676kg in one piece, the lightest of these lions, bedded onto a prepared concrete pad.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eMore resting beasts sit in \u003ca href=\"\/collections\/animal-sculptures\"\u003eanimal sculptures\u003c\/a\u003e, and threshold pieces under \u003ca href=\"\/collections\/garden-statues\"\u003egarden statues\u003c\/a\u003e.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003ch3\u003eSpecification\u003c\/h3\u003e\u003ctable class=\"spec_table\"\u003e\u003ctbody\u003e\n\u003ctr\u003e\n\u003ctd\u003eHeight\u003c\/td\u003e\n\u003ctd\u003e105cm\u003c\/td\u003e\n\u003c\/tr\u003e\n\u003ctr\u003e\n\u003ctd\u003eBase\u003c\/td\u003e\n\u003ctd\u003eIncluded\u003c\/td\u003e\n\u003c\/tr\u003e\n\u003ctr\u003e\n\u003ctd\u003eMaterial\u003c\/td\u003e\n\u003ctd\u003eHand-Carved Natural Marble\u003c\/td\u003e\n\u003c\/tr\u003e\n\u003c\/tbody\u003e\u003c\/table\u003e","brand":"Giant Sculptures","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":53833346908507,"sku":"MST-ANI-036","price":15648.0,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0869\/3383\/2027\/files\/MST-ANI-036_1.jpg?v=1787150640","url":"https:\/\/giant-sculptures.com\/products\/couchant-lion-with-paws-over-the-edge-marble-statue-105cm","provider":"Giant Sculptures","version":"1.0","type":"link"}