Pair of Bronze Figures Entitled ‘Avant Le Combat’ and ‘Après Le Combat’

These bronze figures show Edward, Prince of Wales, standing in a nonchalant pose with one leg crossed over the other, a cigar in his left hand, his hat at his feet and a shotgun slung over his right arm. The elegant Princess of Wales is depicted skating, with feathers in her hat, and wearing a fur-trimmed coat and muff as the wind catches her three-quarter length skirt. Each stamped Elkington & Co Founders and G 1870. English, dated 1870. Provenance: Prince Victor of Hohenlohe-Langenburg, Count Gleichen. Prince Victor of Hohenlohe-Langenburg, Count Gleichen, was the son of Prince Ernst of Hohenlohe-Langenburg and Princess Feodore of Leiningen, half-sister to Queen Victoria. He ran away from school to England in 1848 and was sponsored to enter the Royal Navy by Queen Victoria. In 1854 he attained the rank of Lieutenant after serving as mate on the flagship Cumberland, where his future brother-in-law was captain and his future father-in-law was admiral. In 1866 he retired from the navy and trained with the British sculptor William Theed. As a sculptor, he carried out several portrait commissions for Queen Victoria including a statuette of Prince Alfred, her second son, and another of Prince Albert Victor...

An Italian bronze equestrian sculpture of Emanuele Filiberto, Duke of Savoia, by Baron Carlo Marochetti, the duke wearing full arm...

A Fine Bronze Sculpture by Luis Domenech y Vicente, c.1904 After the Model He Exhibited at the Salon Des Beaux Arts in Paris That Year Luis Domenech y Vicente, Le Messager de Paix, bronze sculpture, signed lower base, foundry mark/stamp ‘European Bronze Finery...

A Meiji period bronze of a huntsman carrying a gun, Signed in a seal. ??? in an elaborate seal script, Which reads “Kakuha sei”. Japanese, circa 1910. Kakuha Kanzaemon had shops...

A pair of French bronze figures entitled 'Avant le combat' and 'Apres le combat' Cast from the models by Etienne-Henri Dumaige, last qua...

A pair of French bronze figures entitled 'Avant le combat' and 'Apres le combat' Cast from the models by Etienne-Henri Dumaige, last qua...

Standing over 2 feet tall, these high quality bronze statues depict soldiers during the French revolutionary wars. They are labeled and signed Dumaige (French sculptor, Etienne-Henry Dumaige 1830-1888). The statues show incredible detail, excellent proportion, and retain their original, rich, brown patina, which is still in remarkable condition. Each solider has a raised brass placard on the front of the 1 ½” thick square bases: one reads Avant le combat volontaire de 1792 par Dumaige, H.C, while the other is titled “Apres le combat grenadier de 1792 par Dumaige, H.C.”. The designation “H.C.” stands for Hors concours (“standout”), which is used for artwork that is excluded from competition because it has already claimed top honors elsewhere. Avant, meaning “before” shows our soldier as a volunteer drummer. Drums were used on the battlefield not only to provide cadence for the soldiers, but also to issue orders based on the percussion pattern. Here, our soldier’s drum is attached to a harness that runs across his right shoulder. Both hands are gripping the frame of the drum, while there is a drumstick in his left hand. There is a satchel on the soldier’s back as he stands on grass with a small wood fence behind him. Our soldier has a mustache with long braided hair in the back. He is wearing a fluted bicorne with a pomme tuft and has earrings in both ears. His jacket is knee-length in the back, with tasseled epaulets on the shoulders. Apres, meaning “after”, depicts the man as a grenadier, enjoying tobacco after a conflict. The grenadier...

Late 19th century pair of bronze French soldiers by Etienne Henri Dumaige. Representing two separate moments in the French Revolution, the uprisi...