The Lion And The Serpent Bronze Antoine-louis Barye (1796-1875)

Very naturalistic representation of a lion fighting a snake. Bronze sculpture, old edition cast iron, signed BARYE on the terrace at the level of the right rear thigh, beautiful nuanced brown patina. Version known as “Lion with snake No. 3 sketched” whose initial creation seems to date from 1832, other versions followed in particular the plaster work presented at the Salon of 1833 then that in bronze at the Salon of 1836. A similar piece appears in the Louvre collections on deposit at the Musée d'Orsay. Dimensions L 16.8 cm x D 11.2 his animal sculptures. He will improve his skills by spending many hours observing, studying and drawing the animals of the Natural History Museum and those of the menagerie of the Jardin des Plantes. He won the second Prix de Rome in 1820 and exhibited at the Salon in 1831 where he stood out with his "Tiger devouring a gharial", and in 1833, he presented his "Lion with a serpent", a plaster version now integrated in the collections of the Musée des Beaux Arts de Lyon, followed by a commission from the king for the Tuileries garden, the bronze version will be presented at the Salon of 1836, alongside the work "Tiger slaying a deer", a version of which will be ordered by the State. He created a table piece, considered a masterpiece of decorative arts for Ferdinand-Philippe d'Orléans, and obtained numerous orders from Napoleon III for monumental sculptures as part of the construction of the new Louvre museum. Barye will open his own foundry from which he will publish his creations with modern techniques. Subject to financial difficulties for a time, he will transfer his models to the Barbadian foundry, but he will subsequently buy them back and regain control of his editions. He achieved great success at the Universal Exhibition of 1855, was appointed professor of zoology drawing at the Natural History Museum in 1854, and was admitted as a member of the Institute in 1868.