Bronze Sculpture of the 8th Bersaglieri Regiment, Gift to Lieutenant General Gustavo Fara, 1919

An important bronze sculpture depicting a Bersaglieri soldier of the 8th Regiment, a gift from Colonel Ugo Conti, Commander of the 8th Bersaglieri Regiment, to Lieutenant General Gustavo Fara, Commander of the XXIII Bersaglieri Division.

The sculpture was commissioned by Colonel Ugo Conti to one of the most important Florentine sculptors: Angiolo Malavolti (Florence 1876, Florence 1947). Malavolti succeeded in creating the image of a Bersaglieri soldier in the rush of a bayonet attack, a highly realistic and visually intense figure, conveying the strength and fighting energy that the soldiers of the 8th Bersaglieri Regiment had demonstrated in real life.

In fact, the Bersaglieri's black hat the number 8, identifying the regiment of which the Colonel himself was Commander from July 16, 1918, until the end of the war. This regiment was part of the 23rd Bersaglieri Division, commanded by Lieutenant General Gustavo Fara.

It is historical fact that the two "front-line" commanders were united on the battlefield, in the bloody and decisive battles that took place between October and November 1918, on the Piave-Monticano-Livenza-Tagliamento-Paradiso rivers, which earned Colonel Ugo Conti the award of the Military Order of Savoy.

This sculpture was donated by Colonel Ugo Conti to Lieutenant General Gustavo Fara in February 1919 in Florence (when the latter was in command of the Territorial Army Corps), his last assignment before being discharged from his military career in July 1920, a career filled with countless prestigious awards, and shortly thereafter becoming, not only a Senator of the Kingdom, but also Inspector and Lieutenant General of the M.V.S.N.

The sculpture is made using the lost-wax casting technique and features a base made of "Cardoso Stone," a small quantity of which is quarried in Cardoso (Stazzema) in Tuscany.

A unique historical piece, in excellent condition.