19th Century French Ormolu Sculpture of a Baccante, by Jean-Léon Gérôme

Product Description

A gorgeous 19th century French ormolu sculpture of a Baccante, by Jean-Léon Gérôme. This incredible sculpture is by Jean-Léon Gérôme (French, 1824-1904), one of the most famous and inspirational Academic French artists of the 1800s, who started to cast and make object art, like sculptures, in the later years of his career.

This amazing sculpture is called ‘Bacchante à L’Amour’ or ‘Bacchante à la Grappe’. The piece is made out of ormolu or doré bronze and demonstrates bacchante, who is a woman follower of Bacchus. Bacchus is the Greek G-D of parties and wine, otherwise known in Roman mythology as Dionysus. Bacchante is seen with her head against a thyrsos, a special staff created of a fennel plant. At the top is an acorn finial with vines around it. The thyrsos and Bacchus are symbolic of fertility, wealth, and a life-time of pleasures. At the mid section of the thyrsos is a beautiful ormolu putti climbing up while the Bacchante holds fruit, most probably grapes, above him.

The figure is mounted on a round base with Jean-Léon Gérôme’s signiture, ‘JL. Gérôme’ as well as the number C575. The Parisian Foundry mark can also be found on the base from Siot-Decauville, Paris, the location where this figure was cast. The figure was made in 1892 in three size variations.
Paris, circa 1892

Literature: See Gerald M. Ackerman, The Life and Work of Jean-Léon Gérôme (1986), Fig. S.25, p. 318.

Height: 14.75 in (37.47 cm)
Width: 4.25 in (10.8 cm)
Depth: 3.25 in (8.26 cm)