Pair Of Bronze Sculptures Representing Voltaire And Rousseau, Restoration Period.

Pair of sculptures representing Voltaire and Rousseau in full length after Houdon in finely chiseled patinated bronze on a Sienna marble base, France, Restauration period, 1815-1830.

François-Marie Arouet, known as Voltaire (1694-1778) and Jean-Jacques Rousseau (1712-1778) are considered the two greatest writers and philosophers of the reign of Louis XV. Already during their lifetime, a few sculptors tried to portray them, then in 1778 after their disappearance, several pairs of statuettes associating them were made in busts or in full length. It is in this context that the two sculptures that we are presenting were created, of which a few similar examples are known, notably a pair on cylindrical bases in onyx and gilded bronze which was formerly in a private European collection (Sotheby's sale, Paris, on 14 June 2006, lot 173). Let us also mention that some old auction sales describe sculptures of this type then attributed to Forestier, notably those which appeared in the Hurtault collection in February 1825: “171. Two full-length figures, Voltaire and Rousseau, chiseled by Mr. Forestier. They are placed on Italian morello cherry bases; 12 inches in proportion.”