- 16
Jean-Léon Gérôme
Estimate
40,000 - 60,000 GBP
bidding is closed
Description
- Jean-Léon Gérôme
- Cléopâtre et César
- oil on canvas
- 30.5 by 23cm., 12 by 9in.
Provenance
Aimé Morot (1850-1913, the artist's son-in-law, married to Gérôme's daughter Suzanne Mélaine Gérôme. His Monument à Gérôme in the Musée d'Orsay depicts Gérôme at work sculpting his Gladiators in 1878)
Sale: Sotheby's Parke-Bernet, New York, 1962
Schweitzer Gallery, New York (by 1966)
Mme Huisse, Rouen (by 1970)
Private Collection, Paris (by 1984)
Private Collection, Germany
Purchased from the above by the previous owner in 1994
Sale: Sotheby's Parke-Bernet, New York, 1962
Schweitzer Gallery, New York (by 1966)
Mme Huisse, Rouen (by 1970)
Private Collection, Paris (by 1984)
Private Collection, Germany
Purchased from the above by the previous owner in 1994
Literature
Gerald Ackerman, The Life and Work of Jean-Léon Gérôme, London, 1986, p. 218, no. 159B, described
Gerald Ackerman, La Vie et l'oeuvre de Jean-Léon Gérôme, Courbevoie-Paris, 2000, p. 258, no. 159.2, described
Gerald Ackerman, La Vie et l'oeuvre de Jean-Léon Gérôme, Courbevoie-Paris, 2000, p. 258, no. 159.2, described
Condition
The canvas has been relined. Ultraviolet light reveals a few minor scattered spots of retouching in the background and in the lower left corner, and a thick varnish. There are two pinhead-sized paint losses near the extreme right edge, and fine lines of craquelure, notably in the lighter pigments in the lower half of the composition (visible in the catalogue illustration). Overall the work is in good condition and is ready to hang.
The catalogue illustration is overall accurate, however the colours are richer and more contrasted in the original.
Held in an elaborate Egyptian revival-style gilt frame.
"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 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."
Catalogue Note
According to Plutarch, Cleopatra, unable to find access to a busy Julius Caesar after his conquest of Egypt, had herself wrapped in bedding and delivered to his office by her friend Apollodorus the Sicilian. Gérôme has turned the bulky bedding into a fine carpet, a tradition continued by Bernard Shaw for his play Caesar and Cleopatra. A little dizzy from her uncomfortable jaunt, she balances herself with the fingers of her left hand on the back of the slave unwrapping her, as she stands up and, by her pose and expression, commands the attention of the dictator.
The present work is one of two known preparatory oil paintings for the larger version Cléopatra et César of 1866 (fig. 1). Several related drawings show Gérôme experimenting with the composition further. In some, Cleopatra is revealed lying on the opened rug, looking up as Caesar walks towards her. In the present work, Caesar looks up blandly from his desk, as if distracted and disturbed in his thought. This is much like in the finished version, except that there the pensive Caesar, still seated at his desk, looks up and holds his arms out in astonishment. In the finished version Gérôme also added Caesar's four secretaries. The setting is from a plate of the Temple of Deir el Medinah in the Napoleonic publication, The Description of Egypt.
Cléopatra et César was an important commission for the new mansion on the Champs-Elysées of Madame de Paiva, a famous courtesan, who was nonetheless not pleased with the finished painting, and returned it. The large oil was subsequently bought by Gérôme's father-in-law, Goupil. By the time it was exhibited at the annual exhibition of the Royal Academy in 1871 the painting had already, according to Fanny Field Hering, 'achieved worldwide renown' (Fanny Field Hering, The Life and Work of Jean-Léon Gérôme, New York, 1892, p. 112).
Among the many references Gérôme incorporates into the present painting, is one to himself, in the form of the lion's head that decorates the clasp of Cleopatra's belt. His middle name being Léon, his association with a lion offered Gérôme a teasing opportunity for visual punning in his paintings which often played on his own sense of sexual allure. In the present work the appearance of the lion's head to decorate Cleopatra's waist band seems suggestively appropriate given Madame de Paiva's proclivities.
The present work is one of two known preparatory oil paintings for the larger version Cléopatra et César of 1866 (fig. 1). Several related drawings show Gérôme experimenting with the composition further. In some, Cleopatra is revealed lying on the opened rug, looking up as Caesar walks towards her. In the present work, Caesar looks up blandly from his desk, as if distracted and disturbed in his thought. This is much like in the finished version, except that there the pensive Caesar, still seated at his desk, looks up and holds his arms out in astonishment. In the finished version Gérôme also added Caesar's four secretaries. The setting is from a plate of the Temple of Deir el Medinah in the Napoleonic publication, The Description of Egypt.
Cléopatra et César was an important commission for the new mansion on the Champs-Elysées of Madame de Paiva, a famous courtesan, who was nonetheless not pleased with the finished painting, and returned it. The large oil was subsequently bought by Gérôme's father-in-law, Goupil. By the time it was exhibited at the annual exhibition of the Royal Academy in 1871 the painting had already, according to Fanny Field Hering, 'achieved worldwide renown' (Fanny Field Hering, The Life and Work of Jean-Léon Gérôme, New York, 1892, p. 112).
Among the many references Gérôme incorporates into the present painting, is one to himself, in the form of the lion's head that decorates the clasp of Cleopatra's belt. His middle name being Léon, his association with a lion offered Gérôme a teasing opportunity for visual punning in his paintings which often played on his own sense of sexual allure. In the present work the appearance of the lion's head to decorate Cleopatra's waist band seems suggestively appropriate given Madame de Paiva's proclivities.