19th Century French Bronze Sculpture of Sleeping Lion by Jules Moigniez

19th century Italian Grand Tour bronze of Narcissus standing and gazing at his reflection after the ancient Roman original excavated at Pompeii in 1862, now at the Archaeological Mus...

A very fine pair of English Regency bronze whippets or greyhounds on verdi antico marble book form bases, after Thomas Weeks. Each dog sculpture is beautifully cast with their individual personalities. Clearly after, and possibly by, Thomas Weeks. These whippets are resonant of the early nineteenth-century work of Thomas Weeks (d. 1834) who established a 'Royal Mechanical Museum' or emporium in Tichbourne Street in about 1797. The attractions included various animated animals and insects, ingenious clocks, musical instruments, elaborate temples, toys and other such peculiarities that appealed to the London public in the late 18th and early 19th Century (C. Gilbert, 'Some Weeks cabinets reconsidered', The Connoisseur, May 1971...

Beautifully cast and very compelling 19th century Grand Tour bronze oil lamp in the ancient Roman style with dolphin handles. The dolphin sh...

Very sensitive rendering of a greyhound at rest with a rich dark brown patina with lighter highlights showing through. The dog is shown reclining with one paw turned up, a detail I find endearing as a dog owner, my border collie does this too! Mounted on a polished black slate base, marked Fratin on the base. Also stamped with the foundry mark 'Daubree, Editeur'. A fine desk top, shelf, or mantel piece for the dog lover, Christopher Fratin (1 January 1801 – 16 August 1864), also known as Christophe Fratin, was a noted French sculptor in the animalier style, and one of the earliest French sculptors to portray animals in bronze. Fratin was born in Metz, Moselle, France the son of a taxidermist. He first studied drawing under Pioche in Metz and later worked in Paris at the studio of Théodore Géricault. He exhibited at the Paris Salon from 1831 to 1842 and 1850–1862, as well as at the Great Exhibition in London in 1851. Fratin never signed his bronzes but instead used a stamp showing his last name in straight block letters. Fratin received monumental commissions in France and elsewhere, including the Deux Aigles Gardant Leur Proie (Eagles and Prey, created 1850) displayed since 1863 in New York City’s Central Park. Today, Fratin’s sculpture is on permanent display in the Louvre, the city museums of Metz, Lyon, Strasbourg, Nîmes and at the Peabody Institute in Baltimore, Maryland. The Georg Eisler...

Beautifully carved Italian Grand Tour serpentine copy of Bertel Thorvaldsen's monumental sculpture 'The Lion of Lucerne' also known as 'The Dying...

A pair of French Empire bronze models of recumbent Sphinxes on Verdi Antico marble bases. The bronze with the warm golden patina of age. The custom marble bases, stepped on one side ...

Bronze inkwell sculpture with nuanced brown patination. Two ink pots are cleverly hidden at either end of the sculpture: One in the stump of the tree and the other under a rock. Moig...

Image of Jules Moigniez Bronze Sculpture of a Pointer and Pheasant, 19th Century Jules Moigniez Bronze Sculpture of a Pointer and Pheasant, circ...

An excellent mid 19th Century French Animalier bronze study of a falcon perched on a branch using its outspread wings to balance and with its beak open. The bronze exhibiting excellent intricate hand chased surface detail and very fine rich brown lightly rubbed patination, signed J Moigniez. ADDITIONAL INFORMATION Height: 23 cm Width: 23 cm Condition: Excellent Original Condition Circa: 1870 Materials: Bronze Book reference: Animals in Bronze by Christopher Paine Page no. 79 SKU: 9000 ABOUT Jules Moigniez (French, 1835 ~ 1894) Moigniez was a French animalier sculptor of the 19th century. He worked primarily in bronze and frequently exhibited his sculptures at the Paris salon. He was best known for his bronzes depicting birds, although his skill and versatility enabled him to produce quality horse sculptures (primarily racehorses), dog sculptures and hunting scenes. His bird sculptures were among the finest ever created in his time. Moigniez was born at Senlis, Oise, France in 1835, the son of a metal gilder. Moigniez’s father bought a foundry to cast his sculptures, which was of great benefit to Moigniez as he didn’t have the added foundry costs that most of his contemporaries had to pay. Moigniez studied sculpture under the tutelage of Paul Comoléra (a student of François Rude) in Paris. It is quite likely that Moigniez’s attraction to bird sculpture was a direct result of his education under Comoléra, who was himself a bird specialist. Over the course of his 40-year sculpting career Moigniez exhibited thirty works at the Salon between 1855–92. His first submission in a major art exhibition was his plaster, Pointer Stopping at a Pheasant, at the Exposition Universelle of 1855.[1][2] Moigniez was known for the fine detail and chiseling of his sculptures. His bronzes—usually cast using the lost wax method—were always immaculately chased and patinated, and were especially popular in England and Scotland.[2] More than half of his output during his lifetime was sold in the United Kingdom. By the end of the 19th century, his sculpture had become popular in the United States as well. In contrast with other animaliers of the period such are P.J. Mêne and Antoine-Louis Barye, Moigniez’s bird sculptures often incorporated highly detailed bases complete with bushes, extensive foliage and undergrowth. His castings were generally of excellent quality with a variety of patinas, the gilded and silvered patinas being the most desirable and sought after by collectors. His bronzes could be reproached for an excess of detail, a result of overly-finicky, over-worked chiseling. Moigniez received redemption, however, by portraying in his sculpture a certain “elegance of attitudes”. His Chien braque...

This antique bronze sculpture was created in France, circa 1880. Standing on a bronze dore base, the composition features a patinated bronze Labrador dog standing on rocky ground and...

This large antique bronze sculpture was created in France, circa 1880. Standing on a patinated walnut base, the composition features a setter walking on rocky ground and looking ahea...

Antique 19th century French bronze by JULES MOIGNIEZ (1835-1894): SETTER WITH HARE, the setter looking back at the hare, crouched under foliage, inscribed to edge of oval base 'J MOI...