French Sculptures

A fine pair of antique French gilt bronze vases. Decorated with an assembly of musical instruments, a gourd, and even a hat. Extremely solid and finely cast, these urns or vas...

Bronze sculpture, signed F. Barbedienne, 19th century, Napoleon III period. Bronze sculpture, marble base, mechanical reproduction, signe...

Mesmerizing bronze sculpture from the late 19th century of a mythical faun creature playing a flute by Claude Michel Clodion. This character gracefully rests on an elegant marble pl...

Pablo Picasso (1881-1973, Espagnol) Oiseau à la huppe 1952 Cendrier rond tourné D. 14,5 cm R.A terre de faience blanche, décor à la paraffine oxydée, émail blanc, Noir, Tiré à 500 ex...

Sterling silver swashbuckler, Cartier, circa 1910.

French Rope Swan Adrien Audoux and Frida Minet , Circa 1960. Jardiniere or basket. 22 inches Lenght.

"Enfant au Coq" A bronze sculpture of a child and cock after Cecioni Adriano, depicting a young child holding a rooster aloft. The bronze has a warm ...

Antique French Louis XVI period dore bronze striking cartel clock, 18th century. With it's horological functions completely intact this stunning clock is in excellent condition with ...

Beautifully modeled, cast and finished, this high-relief plaque of a nude male figure followed by a four-horse chariot driven by a robed female figure was produced the famous Barbedi...

François Collette or Colette (1936-2024, France) : "Stabile" Hand made and welded mobile sculpture made of chrome plated metal Signed "FC" and dated "75" (1975) Dimensions Height...

A very fine and attractive bronze of a young boy playing the violin, " the little violinist " By Emile Carlier (1849 -1927) resting on a molded stepped marble circular base, signed E...

An exquisitely cast example of Armand Godard's Seated Woman Holding a Bird circa 1930, it is a silky smooth cast of the highest quality with hand-hammered and beautifully chiseled te...

Very sophisticated carved object in very dense ebony. Unsigned.

Religious sculpture representing the nativity, carved wood from the 16th century. Carved wood sculpture, walnut wood and oak wood base, sculpture representing the nativity, circa 16...

Vadim Androusov (1895-1975) Plaster head of a boy on a stained black wood plinth, signed and dated 3.9.47 From an apartment in Toulouse decorated by Andre Arbus in the 1940s

An outstanding French deco Primavera vase with lizards surrounding the sides in a mottled brown and white glossy craquelure glaze. Signed Primavera. Note: Camera flashes on vase.

Henri Picard, a master of artistic metalwork during the opulent Second Empire period in France, remains a figure of enduring fascination and admiration in the realms of antique art a...

Place this antique bronze cow sculpture in an office or a man's desk desk. Crafted in France, circa 1880 and beautifully executed, the patinated "Vache Beuglante" (cow bellowing) is ...

Art Deco carved alabaster figure of a posing nude lady France, circa 1920 Hand-carved depicting a nude lady wearing a necklace and head band on the original carved marble base.  

Exceptional and expressively carved solid walnut near life Size statue of nude woman raised on attached fluted column pedestal base in overall beautifully aged original rich surface ...

Rustic Primitive Hand Carved goat bell, circa 1950 Manufactured in France. In original condition with minor wear consistent of age and use.

A large and impressive late 19th century French animalier bronze group of a Pheasant surprised by a weasel, both animals heightened with original gilding and raised on a naturalistic...

Finely sculpted and cast bronze sculpture of two hounds hunting pheasants after the original model by the French animalier sculptor, Pierre Jules Mene (1810-1879).

The product is a 19th-century French carved bust of Diana, a sculpture depicting the ancient Roman goddess. This masterpiece of art showcases intricate carving techniques used in cre...

Roger Capron French (1922–2006) large ceramic tile evocative of a prehistoric fossil fish, executed in intricate, dimensional detail and finished in...

A impressive late 18th century French sandstone sundial mounted on a custom lade iron stand. The Latin numerals finely carved at both sides an...

Antique French pressed botanical from 1897. For those of you that may be interested, we will be listings many more antique French botanical's in the c...

Beautiful spelter statue on a stepped marble base representing a woman accompanied by a sheep and her little one. Dating from the 1920s, the art nouveau period. Very good condition...

French Lion Mask Fountain Head Sculpture, Mounted on Iron Stand. Lion head has great attention to detail featuring a nice flowing mane. White in color with a fabulous patina. Has han...

19th century, French hand hammered plaque historicizing a village, circa 1850. Copper plaque in a wood frame.  

"Confidence". calamine. France, around 1900, following Grisard, Désiré (1872-¿). With manufacturing stamp, titled and engraved name. Calamine figure patinated in various shades t...

Bronze sculpture depicting a moving horse, fixed on a rectangular bronze base. France circa 1890.

Probably Mdme. Pompadour and Mdme. DuBarry caricatures, popular motif in the 19th century. On coral colored marble bases, and probably of architectural origin. Great color contrast b...

Art Nouveau 'Plaster' Detailed and Stylized Image of a Women's Buste Beautifully Detailed 1935, France Signed: Depose C.G.390 The Buste is in good condition with a nice age pati...

Terracotta sculptures, Art Nouveau period, 1900. Terracotta sculpture of a woman's face, Art Nouveau period, 1900, unsigned. H: 59cm, W: 42cm, D: 28cm

Thonet manufactured this object (11022) around the turn of the century and was illustrated in their 1904 catalog (see photo). In 1917 Duchamp hung one from the ceiling of his New Yor...

An antique French ormolu souvenir of Lourdes, showing St Bernadette before the Virgin Mary as the "Miracle du Clerge", 5th April 1858, mid 19th Century i...

ROSA BONHEUR French, 1822-1899 "Boeuf Couché" (Resting Bull) Patinated sand-cast bronze Signed "Rosa B" in base conceived 1846, cast circa 1870-90 Item # 408TGI08P The original...

M. Joffroy, France. Rare modernist bronze sculpture. EDF, Pimingui. Mid-20th century. Measures: 16 x 8 cm. In excellent condition. Stamped and signed.

An impressive and majestic French 19th century patinated Bronze and Ormolu statue of a horse and groom, modeled after the horses of Marly. The spectacular horse is draped in a saddle...

Large Apollo Torso Sourced from Paris, France, by Martyn Lawrence Bullard Fitted with Mount and original hand-painting

Striking pair of French blanc de chine porcelain life size parrots or cockatoos casually perched on grapevines.

A French 19th-20th Century Orientalist Style Cold Painted Spelter Figural Lamp-Torchere, by Barcelona born artist Pedro Ramon Rigual (1863-1917). T...

Black panther on oak base signed L. Houzeaux Original Art Deco, France 1930s width: 65 cm Height: 20 cm Depth: 12,5 cm

Luxury at its finest, made by the World renowned French maker of ‘Daum’ of Nancy, France circa 1960-80. This item crystallizes the extraordinary know-how of the Daum craftsmen. Limit...

This exquisite bronze figurine from the early 1900s, by renowned French sculptor Emmanuel Frémiet, depicts a seated cat with exceptional elegance and realism. The sculpture captures ...

Pierre Alexandre Schoenewerk (French, 1820-1885) "Erato" Patinated and Gilt Bronze Sculpture, late 19th century, the seated muse with turtle-form lyre, on an oval base, signed, and c...

An important and high quality true pair of French 19th century Louis XVI st. patinated Bronze, Ormolu and marble statues, signed Carrier Belleuse. Each exceptional statues is support...

A silver plated architecturally inspired table object. Signed Original unpolished state.

An iron cast square vase with an iron base, with relief decorative elements, over which is a connecting element. Overall the iron rods that describe a vase silouette. The basket is f...

1990s French iron cactus sculpture.

Pair of Glazed Ceramic Flower Vases by Delphine Massier, France, circa 1890.

This very nice sculpture representing a naked woman posing is all made of glass. This is a French work in the Art Deco style. Circa 1970

A pan boy standing on a ball supported by Fish around the base. Has the two flutes. Signed on the base Frederick William Mac Monies and dated 1890 and with the Foundry seal. Has the ...

Plaster bust/mannequin which served an advertising purpose for new lingerie collections. It is in very good condition for its age. The hairstyle of the lady is also in the 'a...

Found in a chateau in Loriol du Comtat, in the Provence region of France, this large-scale plaster sculpture is signed and dated by the artist, making it a rare find. Originally part of a boiserie containing a fireplace, the sculpture decorated the main hall of the chateau. The artist, Marius Sain, created the piece for the owners of the chateau in 1914. The lovely depiction of a shepherdess and her flock is a fitting subject for an area of France in which shepherding is such an important part of the culture. The preserved heritage of transhumance in Provence goes back at least 800 years, as evidenced by collections of ancient songs, stories, and art. Life-size in scale, the lovely sculpture features a mix of high-, mid-, and low-relief embellishments. A hooded shepherdess tends to her flock of sheep with a crook in hand. A dog sits calmly at her feet as the flock gathers in front of them. Both the shepherdess and the dog are in high relief, as is the lead sheep. The lamb seen suckling from the front sheep was crafted in mid relief, as is the visible head on the far right of the sculpture. There are a few sheep behind them in low relief. Large trees can be seen on either side of the group, while off in the background (faintly visible) are a castle with four fastigiate Mediterranean cypress trees (known as Stricta) and a spired church. The attention to detail is magnificent, with textured surfaces including the animals’ fur and the uneven ground. Block print on the plaster can be seen at the base. The letters read Le Soir, which is French for “The Night”. The right side of the sculpture has been signed “M Sain 1914”. Marius Joseph Sain was born in 1877 in Avignon, France. In 1902, Sain moved to Paris to study at the Ecole des Beaux-Arts. Through introductions by his older brother and painter, Paul...

A very fine and Monumental French 19th century patinated bronze group Titled "The Abduction of the Sabine Women" after a model by Pierre Loison (French, 1816-1886), depicting a young scantily maiden being carried away on the arms of a Roman soldier, raised on circular ebonized wood and brass revolving pedestal stand. Signed at the base: P. Loison, circa: Paris, 1870-1880. Overall height (Sculpture and Pedestal): 91 inches (231.2 cm). Sculpture height: 54 3/4 inches (139.1 cm). Sculpture width: 24 inches (61 cm). Pedestal height: 36 inches (91.5 cm). Pedestal width (Widest): 25 1/2 inches (64.8 cm). Pierre Loison was a French sculptor of the 19th century born in the seaside town of Loir-et-Cher on July 5, 1816 and died in Cannes on February 3, 1886. In 1841, he joined the Pierre-Jean David d'Angers workshop where he became one of his favorite pupils. A year later he attended the School of Fine Arts in Paris. He exhibited for the first time at the Salon des artistes Français where in 1845 he was awarded third-class medal. In 1853 he was awarded First Place medal and at the Universal Exhibition of 1955 he received an honorable mention and another medal award in 1859. On 12 July 1859 and by decree, he was made "Chevalier de la Légion d’Honneur". Pierre Loison is buried at The Montparnasse Cemetery in Paris. Works by Pierre Loison "Femme assise": Terre cuite (1843) au musée Gustave-Moreau à Paris "Jeune fille portant un vase": Statue en marbre blanc, (h. 1,25 m) datée de 1857 et présentée au Salon de 1859 ; la statue fut d’abord placée au Palais-Royal (appartements du prince Napoléon) ; elle est actuellement au musée des Beaux-arts de Dole ; une réplique de taille réduite est au Musée des arts décoratifs de Paris. "La Halle aux grains de Mer": Chaque façade de ce bâtiment, classé à l’inventaire supplémentaire des monuments historiques, comporte un fronton triangulaire et celui de la façade ouest représentant « L’Agriculture distribuant des couronnes aux enfants de Beauce et de Sologne » a été sculpté gracieusement par P. Loison, natif de la commune. "La Justice assise": Allégorie de la Justice au fronton du Palais de justice de Blois (1847). "Buste d’Achille Fould": Au musée du Château de Blois 8; "Nausicaa": Statue en plâtre présentée au Salon de 1874, au musée des Beaux-arts de Vendôme. "Statue de J-B. Pigalle sur la façade de l’hôtel de ville de Paris "Sculptures extérieures du Palais du Louvre": Pierre Loison est l’auteur de neuf statues qui décorent les façades du Louvre "Figure" (1878) au deuxième étage du Pavillon Marsan10; "La Navigation" (1868) sur la balustrade du premier étage du Pavillon des États11; "Pandore" (1861) sur l’aile Est12; « Vénus » (1865) Aile Marsan13; "l’Histoire et la Vérité" (1857)14; "La Poésie et la Philosophie" (1857)15 deux oculi du Pavillon Mollien, coté cour Napoléon ; "Concordet" (1857) sur la balustarde du premier étage de la Rotonde de Beauvais, coté cour Napoléon. "Statue de Sappho sur le rocher de Leucade : datée de 1859, (h. 1,85 m) sur la façade nord de la cour carrée du Palais du Louvre à Paris ; le modèle en plâtre, offert par Mme Loison, est au musée des Beaux-arts de Blois. "Vierge à l’enfant": Statue en marbre en l’église Saint-Pierre de Dampierre-en-Yvelines. "Jeune romain enlevant une Sabine": Groupe présenté au Salon de 1863 qui a été reproduit en bronze par la fonderie d’art Raingo frères. "Sépulture de la famille Hautoy : Au cimetière du Père-Lachaise, deux bas-reliefs en marbre représentant l’un "La vie de Famille," l’autre 'Le chantier," datés de 1880. "Demoiselle d’honneur de la Cour de François Ier": Statue en pierre exposée au Salon des artistes vivants en 1870 ; acquise par l’État à ce Salon, elle a été déposée en 1891, devant la mairie d’Aubin. "La Paix distribuant des palmes aux génies des Beaux-arts": Fronton du Château de Compiègne (1866). "Daphnis et Naïs": Groupe en marbre (1869) au musée de Picardie à Amiens. "Jean-Baptiste Pigalle": Statue en pierre (1881) sur la façade principale, au rez-de-chaussée de l’Hôtel de ville de Paris. "Gisant de Ferdinand-Philippe d'Orléans: dans la chapelle royale de Dreux en collaboration avec Ary Scheffer. "La Grace": Statue en marbre (1875) dans le grand foyer de l’opéra Garnier. The Abduction of the Sabine Women The Abduction of the Sabine Women is an episode in the legendary history of Rome, traditionally dated to 750 BC, in which the first generation of Roman men acquired wives for themselves from the neighboring Sabine families. Recounted by Livy and Plutarch (Parallel Lives II, 15 and 19), it provided a subject for Renaissance and post-Renaissance works of art that combined a suitably inspiring example of the hardihood and courage of ancient Romans with the opportunity to depict multiple figures, including heroically semi-nude figures, in intensely passionate struggle. Comparable themes from Classical Antiquity are the Battle of the Lapiths and Centaurs and the theme of Amazonomachy, the battle of Theseus with the Amazons. The Abduction is supposed to have occurred in the early history of Rome, shortly after its founding by Romulus and his mostly male followers. Seeking wives in order to found families, the Romans negotiated unsuccessfully with the Sabines, who populated the area. Fearing the emergence of a rival society, the Sabines refused to allow their women to marry the Romans. Consequently, the Romans planned to abduct Sabine women, during a festival of Neptune Equester and proclaimed the festival among Rome's neighbours. According to Livy, many people from Rome's neighbours including folk from the Caeninenses, Crustumini, and Antemnates, and many of the Sabines attended. At the festival Romulus gave a Signal, at which the Romans grabbed the Sabine women and fought off the Sabine men. The indignant abductees were soon implored by Romulus to accept Roman husbands. Livy says Romulus offered them free choice and promised civic and property rights to women. According to Livy, Romulus spoke to them each in person, declaring "that what was done was owing to the pride of their fathers, who had refused to grant the privilege of marriage to their neighbours; but notwithstanding, they should be joined in lawful wedlock, participate in all their possessions and civil privileges, and, than which nothing can be dearer to the human heart, in their common children." Responsibility of the men for meeting the needs of the children thus conceived was not included. War with the Sabines and other tribes Outraged at the occurrence, the King of the Caeninenses entered upon Roman territory with his army. Romulus and the Romans met the Caeninenses in battle, killed their king, and routed their army. Romulus later attacked Caenina and took it upon the first assault. Returning to Rome, he dedicated a temple to Jupiter Feretrius (according to Livy, the first temple dedicated in Rome) and offered the spoils of the enemy king as spolia opima. According to the Fasti Triumphales, Romulus celebrated a triumph over the Caeninenses on 1 March 752 BC. At the same time, the army of the Antemnates invaded Roman territory. The Romans retaliated, and the Antemnates were defeated in battle and their town captured. According to the Fasti Triumphales, Romulus celebrated a second triumph in 752 BC over the Antemnates. The Crustumini also started a war, but they too were defeated and their town captured. Roman colonists subsequently were sent to Antemnae and Crustumerium by Romulus, and many citizens of those towns also migrated to Rome (particularly the families of the captured women). The Sabines themselves finally declared war, led into battle by their king, Titus Tatius. Tatius almost succeeded in capturing Rome, thanks to the treason of Tarpeia, daughter of Spurius Tarpeius, governor of the citadel on the Capitoline Hill. She opened the city gates for the Sabines in return for "what they bore on their arms", thinking she would receive their golden bracelets. Instead, the Sabines crushed her to death with their shields, and her body was thrown from a rock known ever since by her name, the Tarpeian Rock. The Romans attacked the Sabines, who now held the citadel. The Roman advance was led by Hostus Hostilius, the Sabine defence by Mettus Curtius. Hostus fell in battle, and the Roman line gave way, They retreated to the gate of the Palatium. Romulus rallied his men by promising to build a temple to Jupiter Stator on the site. He then led them back into battle. Mettus Curtius was unhorsed and fled on foot, and the Romans appeared to be winning. At this point, however, the Sabine women intervened: [They], from the outrage on whom the war originated, with hair dishevelled and garments rent, the timidity of their sex being overcome by such dreadful scenes, had the courage to throw themselves amid the flying weapons, and making a rush across, to part the incensed armies, and assuage their fury; imploring their fathers on the one side, their husbands on the other, "that as fathers-in-law and sons-in-law they would not contaminate each other with impious blood, nor stain their offspring with parricide, the one their grandchildren, the other their children. If you are dissatisfied with the affinity between you, if with our marriages, turn your resentment against us; we are the cause of war, we of wounds and of bloodshed to our husbands and parents. It were better that we perish than live widowed or fatherless without one or other of you." The battle came to an end, and the Sabines agreed to unite in one nation with the Romans. Titus Tatius jointly ruled with Romulus until Tatius's death five years later. The new Sabine residents of Rome settled on the Capitoline Hill, which they had captured in the battle. Artistic representations: The Rape of the Sabine Women by Johann Heinrich Schönfeld The subject was popular during the Renaissance as symbolising the importance of marriage for the continuity of families and cultures. It was also an example of a battle subject in which the artist could demonstrate his skill in depicting female as well as male figures in extreme poses, with the added advantage of a sexual theme. It was depicted regularly on 15th-century Italian cassoni and later in larger paintings. A comparable opportunity from the New Testament was afforded by the theme of the Massacre of the Innocents. Giambologna The sculpture by Giambologna (1579–1583) that was reinterpreted as expressing this theme depicts three figures (a man lifting a woman into the air while a second man crouches) and was carved from a single block of marble. This sculpture is considered Giambologna's masterpiece. Originally intended as nothing more than a demonstration of the artist's ability to create a complex sculptural group, its subject matter, the legendary rape of the Sabines, had to be invented after Francesco I de' Medici, Grand Duke of Tuscany, decreed that it be put on public display in the Loggia dei Lanzi in Piazza della Signoria, Florence. True to mannerist densely packed, intertwined figural compositions and ambitious overinclusive efforts, the statue renders a dynamic panoply of emotions, in poses that offer multiple viewpoints. When contrasted with the serene single-viewpoint pose of the nearby Michelangelo's David, finished nearly 80 years before, this statue is infused with the dynamics that lead towards Baroque, but the tight, uncomfortable, verticality— self-imposed by the author's virtuosic restriction to a composition that could be carved from a single block of marble— lacks the diagonal thrusts that Bernini would achieve forty years later with his Rape of Proserpina and Apollo and Daphne, both at the Galleria Borghese, Rome. The proposed site for the sculpture, opposite Benvenuto Cellini's statue of Perseus, prompted suggestions that the group should illustrate a theme related to the former work, such as the rape of Andromeda by Phineus. The respective rapes of Proserpina and Helen were also mooted as possible themes. It was eventually decided that the sculpture was to be identified as one of the Sabine virgins. The work is signed OPVS IOANNIS BOLONII FLANDRI MDLXXXII ("The work of Johannes of Boulogne of Flanders, 1582"). An early preparatory bronze featuring only two figures is in the Museo Nazionale di Capodimonte in Naples. Giambologna then revised the scheme, this time with a third figure, in two wax models now in the Victoria and Albert Museum, London. The artist's full-scale gesso for the finished sculpture, executed in 1582, is on display at the Accademia Gallery in Florence. Bronze reductions of the sculpture, produced in Giambologna's own studio and imitated by others, were a staple of connoisseurs' collections into the 19th century. Nicolas Poussin Nicolas Poussin produced two major versions of this subject, which enabled him to display to the full his unsurpassed antiquarian knowledge, together with his mastery of complicated relations of figures in dramatic encounter. One, now at the Metropolitan Museum of Art, was executed in Rome, 1634–35. It depicts Romulus at the left giving the Signal for the abduction. The second version, of 1636–37, now at the Louvre Museum, shows that, though some of the principal figures are similar, he had not exhausted the subject. The architectural setting is more developed. Peter Paul Rubens Peter Paul Rubens painted a version of the subject about 1635–40. It is at the National Gallery, London. Jacques-Louis David Jacques-Louis David painted the other end of the story, when the women intervene to reconcile the warring parties. The Sabine Women Enforcing Peace by Running Between the Combatants (also known as The Intervention of the Sabine Women ) was completed in 1799. It is in the Louvre Museum. David had worked on it from 1796, when France was at war with other European nations after a period of civil conflict culminating in the Reign of Terror and the Thermidorian Reaction, during which David himself had been imprisoned as a supporter of Robespierre. After David’s estranged wife visited him in jail, he conceived the IDEA of telling the story, to honor his wife, with the theme being love prevailing over conflict. The painting was also seen as a plea for the people to reunite after the bloodshed of the revolution. The painting depicts Romulus's wife Hersilia — the daughter of Titus Tatius, leader of the Sabines — rushing between her husband and her father and placing her babies between them. A vigorous Romulus prepares to strike a half-retreating Tatius with his spear, but hesitates. Other soldiers are already sheathing their swords. The rocky outcrop in the background is the Tarpeian Rock. John Leech The English 19th century satirical painter John Leech included in his Comic History of Rome a depiction of the Rape of the Sabine Women, where the women are portrayed, with a deliberate anachronism, in Victorian costume...

Walking stick: silver knob milord shape handle, depicting six soldiers, representing six European states involved in the First World War conflict. Ebony m...

A large-scale French 19th century Louis XVI st. Biscuit de Sèvres Porcelain bust of Madame La Contesse Du Bary in the manner of the sculptor Pajo...

Truly one of a kind pair of old handmade reclining lions. These are unsigned and used a mixture of clay and fiberglass fibers. They show very heavy signs of loss over the years b...