'SEMIRAMIS' A COLD-PAINTED AND PATINATED BRONZE AND IVORY FIGURE, CIRCA 1928**

Details

DEMETRE H. CHIPARUS (1886-1947)
'Semiramis' A Cold-Painted and Patinated Bronze and Ivory Figure, circa 1928**
on onyx and marble base
26 5/8 in. (67.7 cm.) high
base marked Chiparus and with inset metal plaque underneath base LN Paris JL

Special notice

Prospective purchasers are advised that several countries prohibit the importation of property containing materials from endangered species, including but not limited to coral, ivory and tortoiseshell. Accordingly, prospective purchasers should familiarize themselves with relevant customs regulations prior to bidding if they intend to import this lot into another country.

Lot Essay

cf. A. Shayo, Chiparus Master of Art Deco, New York, 1999, p. 51 for the plasteline model, p. 118, pl. 150.
B. Catley, Art Deco and other figures, Antique Collector's Club, Woodbridge, Suffolk, 1978, p. 98.

Semiramis was a legendary figure generally associated with beauty and lust--leitmotifs often found in theatrical productions of the 1920s. Sometimes called the Queen of Babylon, according to one legend, Semiramis was a Syrian noble, who lusted after the beautiful King Ara of Armenia. He rejected her advances and she subsequently led an army against him and he was killed in battle. In The Divine Comedy, Dante condemned Semiramis to the second circle of Hell, reserved for the lustful, and Voltaire depicted her as a similarly predatory woman.

More from An Important Private Collection of French Bronze and Ivory Figures

View All