Baldwin's of St. James's
Auction 22 27 Sep 2018
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Foreign Medals, France, Madame Defly, née Armande Dieudé (1785-1875), by Jean-Baptiste Carpeaux (1827-1875), circular bronze relief portrait plaque, indistinctly signed and dated '1863', bust three-quarters l., wearing bonnet, 183mm. (cf. Laure de Margerie, La revue du Musée d'Orsay, no. 11, Autumn 2000), pierced for suspension, much as made and most decorative
*ex Ralph Holland (1917-2012), art historian, Collection
Madame Defly (1785-1875) was the secretary or 'dame lectrice' to Princess Mathilde Bonaparte from 1856 to 1870. It was through the well-placed Princess Mathilde (1820-1904 - daughter of Jérôme-Napoléon Bonaparte) that Carpeaux gained entrée to the imperial court and in 1863, the same year as the Madame Defly portrait, Princess Eugénie purchased his statue of the Pêcheur napolitain à la coquille. Whilst Madame Defly herself was a person of no great eminence, the plaque showing her with a 'knowing' smile, was to prove to be one of Carpeaux's most popular creations. Examples can be found in several museums world-wide including the Musée d'Orsay, in terracotta, and the Musée de Valenciennes, a patinated plaster, and in bronze in the Metropolitan Museum, New York. A wax model, connected with the manufacturing process, was sold at Chiswick Auctions, London, 21 March 2018 (lot 83).
Estimate: (250-350 GBP)
*ex Ralph Holland (1917-2012), art historian, Collection
Madame Defly (1785-1875) was the secretary or 'dame lectrice' to Princess Mathilde Bonaparte from 1856 to 1870. It was through the well-placed Princess Mathilde (1820-1904 - daughter of Jérôme-Napoléon Bonaparte) that Carpeaux gained entrée to the imperial court and in 1863, the same year as the Madame Defly portrait, Princess Eugénie purchased his statue of the Pêcheur napolitain à la coquille. Whilst Madame Defly herself was a person of no great eminence, the plaque showing her with a 'knowing' smile, was to prove to be one of Carpeaux's most popular creations. Examples can be found in several museums world-wide including the Musée d'Orsay, in terracotta, and the Musée de Valenciennes, a patinated plaster, and in bronze in the Metropolitan Museum, New York. A wax model, connected with the manufacturing process, was sold at Chiswick Auctions, London, 21 March 2018 (lot 83).
Estimate: (250-350 GBP)