LIon au Serpent by Barye

The drama and savagery of Barye's Lion crushing a serpent created a sensation in the Paris Salon of 1833.  The natural energy of the powerful, roaring lion pitted against the swift, deadly bite of the snake presented a radical change in sculptural form, especially when compared to the more static, classicizing sculpture it was exhibited amongst.  The French novelist Alfred de Musset (1810-1857), wrote, "The lion roars! The serpent hisses.  What rage is in that snarling mask, in that sideward gaze, in the bristling fur of its back!  What delicacy in that paw set upon the prey!"  The group was also recognized as a political work.  Barye used the obvious regal symbolism of the lion to flatter his patrons from Orleans after the July Revolution and accession of Louis-Phillipe (1773-1850). 

This model, a life time cast, varies only slightly from the master cast of 1833.  Barye edited the present version with a moulded base in 1845.  It is an extremely fine and beautifully chiselled bronze.

RELATED LITERATURE
Poletti & Richarme, 2000, pp. 175-8, no. A52; Benge in Metamorphosis in Nineteenth-Century Sculpture, pp. 89-106