- 82
Jean-François Millet
Estimate
80,000 - 120,000 USD
bidding is closed
Description
- Jean-François MIllet
- Les deux bêcheurs
- stamped J.F. Millet (lower left)
- crayon noir and white chalk on paper
- 12 by 12 1/4 in.
- 30.5 by 31.1 cm
Provenance
Madame Veuve Millet (and sold: her sale, Hôtel Drouot, Paris, April 24-25, 1894, possibly lot 85)
Sale: Hôtel Drouot, Paris, March 26, 1973
André Bromberg, Paris (acquired at the above sale)
Sale: Sotheby’s, London, November 27, 1984, lot 16, illustrated
Sale: Hôtel Drouot, Paris, March 26, 1973
André Bromberg, Paris (acquired at the above sale)
Sale: Sotheby’s, London, November 27, 1984, lot 16, illustrated
Exhibited
Paris, Grand Palais, Jean-François Millet, 1975, no. 120, illustrated
Tokyo, Okayama, Kanasawa, Tokushima, Kumamoto, L’École de Barbizon, Millet, corot, Courbet, 1982-83, no. 28, illustrated
Tokyo, Okayama, Kanasawa, Tokushima, Kumamoto, L’École de Barbizon, Millet, corot, Courbet, 1982-83, no. 28, illustrated
Literature
Alexandra R. Murphy, Jean-François Millet, exh. cat., Museum of Fine Arts, Boston, March 28 - July 1, 1984, p.175
Condition
Paper laid down on paper; hinged to top of matt with tape. The original paper with an irregular edge.
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.
NOTWITHSTANDING THIS REPORT OR ANY DISCUSSIONS CONCERNING CONDITION OF A LOT, ALL LOTS ARE OFFERED AND SOLD "AS IS" IN ACCORDANCE WITH THE CONDITIONS OF SALE PRINTED IN THE 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.
NOTWITHSTANDING THIS REPORT OR ANY DISCUSSIONS CONCERNING CONDITION OF A LOT, ALL LOTS ARE OFFERED AND SOLD "AS IS" IN ACCORDANCE WITH THE CONDITIONS OF SALE PRINTED IN THE CATALOGUE.
Catalogue Note
Les deux bêcheurs, depicting two young men working in tandem to open up the hard-packed soil in preparation for sowing, belongs to a particularly large suite of drawings, each slightly altering the individual poses, that Millet created on his way to a carefully finished drawing (Private Collection, Japan), an etching, and a large pastel (Museum of Fine Arts, Boston) of Two Men Digging. The sheer number of preparatory studies, as well the diversity of finished compositions, underlines how important the subject of men laboring to break open the soil was for Millet who equated the theme with man’s inexorable fate. Les deux bêcheurs was probably drawn around 1855-56, although Millet continued to address the subject well into the next decade.