ANTOINE LOUIS BARYE (French, 1796-1875)

PROPERTY OF A SOUTH AMERICAN FAMILY (Lots 144-163) This collection of 20 bronzes consists of several fine works which are atelier casts, and more importantly, five sculptures which are Barye's master models. According to family tradition, the works were purchased at the beginning of the century in Paris. The quality of the casts and the rarity of the artist's proofs attest to the discerning eye of the connoisseur who assembled this collection.

Details

ANTOINE LOUIS BARYE (French, 1796-1875)

'Lion devorant une biche', A Bronze Model of a Lion Devouring a Doe

inscribed 'BARYE', stamped 'BARYE' three times and stamped '0' and '10', inscribed underneath 'NO. 625'
5¼in. (14cm.) high, on a red marble base, reddish brown patina

Provenance

Barye Atelier sale (Catalogue des Oeuvres de fue Barye...); Hotel Drouot, Paris, February 7-12, 1876, lot 625

Literature

J. Wasserman, Metamorphases in Nineteenth-Century Sculpture, Cambridge, 1975, p. 100
P. Fusco and H.W. Janson, Romantics to Rodin: French Nineteenth Century Sculpture, Los Angeles, 1980, No 17, p. 129
G. Benge, Antoine-Louis Barye, Sculptor of Romantic Realism, University Park, 1984, pp. 171, 175

Lot Essay

The present bronze is similar technically to other accepted master models. This work is a heavy, almost solid cast with crisp chasing and inscriptions, sections to indicate points of assembly, a heavily turned base and remnants of red sand. Moreover, the stamped signature with the double numbering is the same as the inscription on the Walter's Art Gallery's proof of Lion crushing a Serpent (variation no. 1).

The importance of this cast is further confirmed by the numbering on the underside, the lot number in the sale of Barye's atelier. This "modele en bronze" is not only an addition to the understanding of the sculptor's technical and artistic method, but it is also a superb example of a rare cast made directly from Barye's original modeled wax.