The Grape Harvester Bear, XIX Eme Century Bronze Signed Auguste Cain (1821-1894)

Rare anthropomorphic bronze by Auguste Cain (1821-1894) representing a harvester bear.
a charming and unusual subject. our bear is shown seated wearing a harvester's hood on his back and a hat-shaped bucket in his left paw.
he seems very busy and above all focused on wanting to grasp the contents with the other paw, in a balancing act while seated but with the right posterior raised as in a circus act.
a strange and anthropomorphic attitude with human instruments.
if you look closely at the photos you will notice the finesse of the details:
the braiding of the hood, the straps passing around the legs, the way the fur is treated, the finesse of the pads of the legs.
even the inside of the hood is finely crafted.
a finesse of sculpture and execution specific to the work of this animal sculptor who left us bronzes of great beauty.
moreover, the anthropomorphic side of this harvester bear is reminiscent of the work of Fratin, a great specialist in animal bronzes treated in human attitudes.
Cain's signature is in a cartouche on the back of the hood.
the patina is superb brown in color it is nuanced in the details playing with the light.
our bear rests on its original base in black marble from Belgium with a few chips without any impact.
a rare bronze to find, featuring an excellent signature with an amazing subject.

dimensions:
height 18.5 cm and 13.5 in diameter at the base.

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