Borghese Gladiator, Bronze Sculpture. France 17th Century Period.

Bronze with brown patina resting on a black Anvian marble base. Height with base: 48 cm. The bronze: 34 cm Bronzes are by nature multiples, here is a link which indicates the price of another version during a sale (10,880 euros): https://www.bonhams.com/auction/28520 /lot/37/bronze-figure-representing-the-borghese-gladiator-entourage-of-guillaume-berthelot-1580-1648-france-dapres-lantique-first-half-of-the-17th-century-bronze-figure -of-the-borghese-gladiator-circle-of-guillaume-berthelot-1580-1648-french-after-the-antique-first-half-17th-century/ The statue of the Borghese Gladiator is a Hellenistic sculpture (the period Hellenistic period from 323 BC to 30 BC). It was during the first decade of the 17th century that the remains of the statue were discovered in Nettuno, a port located south of Rome and mentioned for the first time in 1611 at the time of its restoration, this statue was for two centuries the jewel from the Borghese collection. The statue gave rise to numerous interpretations: it was in turn considered a gladiator, a pugilist, or a discobolus. We imagined him as Ajax before the walls of Troy or as Leonidas of Sparta. Finally, Winckelmann suggested that the statue was of a famous warrior, because gladiators did not exist in the time of the sculptor Agasias. The Gladiator was long considered the symbol of Homeric Antiquity, populated by fighting heroes. It very quickly inspired a good number of sculptors from its discovery in the 17th century until the 19th century. Our model probably comes from the workshop of the sculptor Guillaume de Berthelot (1580-1648) or his entourage. He trained and began his career in Rome in the early 17th century. He was strongly influenced by the antiquities he studied, restored and saw in Italy. Returning to France in 1620, he was appointed ordinary sculptor to Marie de Medici, for whom he worked at the Luxembourg Palace. He then became Richelieu's favorite sculptor and his most important commissions came from the Borghese family. Related works: -A bronze version sold in 2005 (Sotheby's London, July 8, 2005, lot 59) -Another in private hands (see Leithe-Jasper and Wengraf, op. cit. no.35, fig.1, p .298)