Sculpture - Young Girl With Sheaf Of Wheat , Mathurin Moreau (1822-1912) - Bronze XIXth

Bronze proof with double patina representing a young girl , with a sheaf of wheat by Mathurin Moreau .
The sheaf of wheat has always been the symbol of happiness and prosperity .
The first sheaf of wheat from the harvest was cut by a young girl , which assured her of marrying within the year , with a husband to her liking.
Sculpture resting on a rotating circular base .
Bronze signed " Math. Moreau ", hollow , on the back of the sculpture .
Old edition font .
19th century period .
Very good state of preservation and patina .

Mathurin Moreau (1822-1912)

A French sculptor renowned for his decorative sculptures , Mathurin Moreau is the son of sculptor Jean-Baptiste Moreau .
His brothers Hippolyte and Auguste are also sculptors .

He was admitted to the Ecole des Beaux-Arts in Paris in 1841 in the workshops of Jules Ramey and Auguste Dumont .
He won the second Prix de Rome in 1842 with " Diodème removing the Palladium " .
He made his debut at the Salon des artistes français in 1848 and stood out there with the statue " L'Élégie " .
He obtained a second class medal at the Universal Exhibition of 1855 in Paris , then a first class medal in 1878 .
In 1897 , for his last participation in the Salon , he was crowned with a medal of honor .

Between 1849 and 1879 , Mathurin Moreau collaborated with the Val d'Osne art foundry and became one of its administrators , but he also provided models to the Compagnie des bronzes de Bruxelles , and exhibited at the Central Union of Fine Arts Applied to Industry in the 1880s .
From 1879 until his death, Mathurin Moreau was elected mayor of the 19th arrondissement of Paris .
He was elevated to the rank of Chevalier of the Legion of Honor in 1865 and an officer in 1885 .

The Musée d' Orsay keeps his photographic portrait .