A Warrior Figure

Collected by the actress, Sarah Bernhardt, on her tour of New Zealand, Australia and the South Pacific in 1891
Private collection

To request a condition report please contact Francesca Cavazzini, email: francesca.cavazzini@sothebys.com, tel: +61 (0) 2 9362 1000 or Greer Adams, email: greer.adams@sothebys.com, tel: +61 (0) 3 9509 2900
"In response to your inquiry, we are pleased to provide you with a general report of the condition of the property described above. Since we are not professional conservators or restorers, we urge you to consult with a restorer or conservator of your choice who will be better able to provide a detailed, professional report. Prospective buyers should inspect each lot to satisfy themselves as to condition and must understand that any statement made by Sotheby's is merely a subjective, qualified opinion. Prospective buyers should also refer to any Important Notices regarding this sale, which are printed in the Sale Catalogue.
NOTWITHSTANDING THIS REPORT OR ANY DISCUSSIONS CONCERNING A LOT, ALL LOTS ARE OFFERED AND SOLD AS IS" IN ACCORDANCE WITH THE CONDITIONS OF BUSINESS PRINTED IN THE SALE CATALOGUE."

In 1891 Sarah Bernhardt, who at the time was arguably the most famous actress in the world, travelled to the South Pacific, Australia and New Zealand on tour. She recounted her adventures in a performance in New York that appeared in a New York Times article entitled Sarah Bernhardt Once More: She talks of Her Travels, of her Art and of New York, published on 3 November 1891. It reads in part: 'she has travelled half the distance of the earth, and played the dramas of Sardou, as she alone can play them, to great audiences in Australia, New Zealand, the Sandwich Islands and the cities of the Pacific slope and Canada. Together with new laurels and histrionic triumphs, Mme. Bernhardt brings back the souvenirs of adventures by sea and land, the remembrance of hunting expeditions and journeys of discovery into the bush and the primeval forests of the islands of the South Pacific.'

This lot is sold with a French label identifying the work as having been collected by Bernhardt in New Zealand in 1891.