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silla was born out of a passion for beautiful objects: special pieces with aesthetic and historical significance. In 2009, after years of collecting, Andrew Silla and his wife Grace began to work privately with clients from their residence in Southern Maryland. Quickly outgrowing the space, the business was moved from Maryland to Pennsylvania in 2012 and after several warehouse location changes it was firmly settled in the present brick-and-mortar location in downtown Shippensburg.

The 9000 square foot brick-and-mortar gallery is home to a large collection of works of art and estate jewelry. We specialize in sculpture circa 1860 through 1930 with a particular emphasis on the Animaliers and as such the gallery always has a very large collection of exceptional European and American sculpture available on display.

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"Valet de Limier", bronze sculpture | Pierre Jules Méne

Mene, Pierre-Jules

SKU:
901RGO15A
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catalog text

"VALET DE LIMIER" CAST AFTER MODEL BY PIERRE JULES MENE
Signed in cast "P.J. Méne 1879", reverse of hound impressed "S"
Item # 901RGO15A 


Featured in Pierre Jules Mene's posthumous catalog Collection compléte des Bronzes d'Art de P.-J. Méne et de Aug. Cain, Sujets de Chasse - Animaux, a text put forward by Susse Freres in the last years of the 19th century to market his sculpture, it was note as number 7, Valet de Limier, and was offered in the original dimension of 47 cm for 400 francs.  Méne's modeling of both the figure and the hound is typical of his work, choosing to present both objectively without a hint of the Romantic notions of his predecessors.  Unlike many of his Animalier peers, Méne showed an even hand at both figural and animal subjects, this evident in the present example - his "Valet" is exceptionally well cast.  The chiseling is exquisite, leaving even the more minute detail in the figure's vest, buttons, cross-body sword harness and ribbon around his cap fully represented.  Notable is the exquisite and unusual rich golden copper patination, this a wash over the darker brown and black patina, creating a striking contrast between recesses and relief.  This was the last piece he exhibited, the wax model presented at the Paris Salons in 1879, the year of his death.  It is a rare and clearly a rather early cast of the model, a fine work for serious collectors of Mené's sculpture.

Literature & Further Reading:

  • Bronzes of the Nineteenth Century, A Dictionary of Sculptors, Pierre Kjellberg, p. 469-486, present example pictured f. 1 p. 471
  • Bronze Sculpture of Les Animaliers, Jane Horswell, 1971, p. 103-173, present example p. 171

Measurements: 18 3/4" H x 14 1/2" W x 8 5/8" D

Condition Report:
Original patina, finely preserved.  Minor rubbing wear: small spot to his forward shoulder, spot to his cap verso; very slight inward bend to sword.  Overall remaining in exquisite original condition.