Sir Alfred Gilbert, R.A.

Overall, the condition of the bronze is excellent, with minor dirt and wear to the surface consistent with age. There is some dirt in the crevices, particularly around the shoulder joint and around the sword buckle. The base is cast separately and there are slightly visible casting joints around the feet. There are very minor nicks to the base. The arms are cast separately, with slightly visible casting joints. The marbleised wood base is in good condition, with some dirt and wear to the surface. There is evidence of non-active worming throughout the base. There are minor chips to the paintwork at the edges.
"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."

This magnificent bronze is one of the finest sculptures by Alfred Gilbert to have been offered on the art market in recent years. Perseus Arming is arguably the sculptor's most recognisable and desirable model. The present cast is of the rare largest size, and is almost certainly one of the ten casts of the model made under Gilbert's supervision at the Compagnie des Bronzes foundry in Belgium between 1901 and 1920. The cipher with a double ampersand which appears on the present bronze is Gilbert's authenticity stamp; he developed three such cachets after 1903, the others featuring his initials, or a treble clef.

The Perseus comprises one of Gilbert's three ‘autobiographical’ bronzes, the others being –Icarus and Comedy and Tragedy.  These three models represent Gilbert during his most creative decade from 1881 to 1892, from his mid-twenties to his maturity in his late thirties.  The idea was, as Gilbert described it, to take ‘an old fable’ and move on from the literal text to ‘that which is implied'.  Perseus and Icarus have direct mythological reference, whilst Comedy and Tragedy is an original subject with a clear Grecian reference in the mask of Tragedy. As a group their potency is created by Gilbert'’s reinterpretation of classical subjects and artistic references, which whilst being timeless themes, we perceive through Gilbert’'s eyes, thereby making us see them afresh. So, in Perseus' attributes – the winged helmet and sandal –we clearly identify the mythological character, but the moment in which he is represented has no iconographic reference. Here he is shown in a moment of introspection, of vulnerability, of natural unselfconscious eloquence. It is a view of the mythological character which we have never seen before.

Gilbert made his plaster model of Perseus Arming in Rome in the winter of 1880-1 and exhibited the lost-wax bronze cast at the Grosvenor Gallery in 1882. It was received with critical acclaim both in London and at the Paris Salon the following year, where it earned Gilbert an honourable mention and secured his international recognition as the foremost British sculptor of his generation.

Commenting on his success in Paris, Gilbert wrote that it '‘gave me great encouragement to continue the task I had set myself- that was, to go on writing my own history by symbol'’. Gilbert’s description of Perseus Arming continues: '‘I conceived the idea that Perseus before becoming a hero was a mere mortal, and that he had to look to his equipment’ and so Gilbert quite literally depicts Perseus looking over his shoulder to inspect his winged sandal: ‘a youth vulnerable, untested, but equipping himself for the trials of life’'.

RELATED LITERATURE
R. Dorment, Alfred Gilbert, New Haven and London, 1985, pp. 44-46; R. Dorment, Alfred Gilbert Sculptor and Goldsmith, Royal Academy of Arts, London, 1986, pp.106-8, nos 10-11; S. Calloway and L. Federle Orr (eds.), The Cult of Beauty. The Aesthetic Movement 1860-1900, exh. cat. Victoria and Albert Museum, London, 2011, pp. 242-245