This bronze is Barye's most powerful mythological group -- cast posthumously by Barbedienne beginning in 1876 after Ferdinand Barbedienne purchased the original plaster from the studio sale of Barye’’s original works. The present example has the Gold Seal inset in the bronze cast of Collection F. Barbedienne, denoting a special superb quality cast. (This type of gold seal was inset in the larger Barye sculptures while the smaller special high quality Barbedienne casts have the letters F.B in gold inset in the cast.) Theseus and the Centaur is illustrated on the cover of Pierre Kjellbergs ‘‘BRONZES OF THE 19TH CENTURY”

The original bronze of Theseus and the Centaur was commissioned by the state in 1849 for the price of 10,000 francs. It was sent to the Musée Crozatier, Le Puy-en-Velay as a result of the intervention of the Marquis de La Tour-Maubourg. Less than five life-time large casts are thought to have been made, of which examples exist in the Corcoran Gallery of Art, Washington and the Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York. A unique very large bronze of this sculpture was commissioned by Paul Dubois and was cast by E. Gonon in 1877 -- which is now in the Louvre (RF3882).

Barye's original plaster (now lost) was exhibited at the Paris Salon in 1850. This marked Barye's first appearance at the annual Salon after an absence of fourteen years and this particular mythological group was met with considerable critical acclaim. The importance of Theseus and the Centaur in establishing Barye's artistic reputation was evident to Théophile Gauthier who wrote that the group `showed that this Romantic [sculptor] who had been banned by the [Salon] jury was the sculptor who came closest to Phidias and to Greek sculpture. Thus this sculpture could be interpreted as a symbolic tongue in cheek gesture at the members of the Salon who were very jealous of Barye’s commercial success and had previously disregarded his small animalier sculptures -- putting them in the category of decorations.

Full Gallery Website: www.jennmaur.com Other photos of this sculpture can be viewed there also