European & British Art
European & British Art
Property from the Collection of Sir Michael Smurfit
Carl Larsson
Lisana and Margon
Lot Closed
July 14, 01:12 PM GMT
Estimate
20,000 - 30,000 GBP
Lot Details
Description
Property from the Collection of Sir Michael Smurfit
Carl Larsson
Swedish
1853 - 1919
Lisana and Margon
signed with initials lower right
watercolour over traces of pencil on paper
Unframed: 24.5 by 21cm., 9½ by 8¼in.
Framed: 41.5 by 38cm., 16¼ by 15in.
Sale: Nordén, Stockholm, 21 November 1996, lot 330 (as Sagan om rosen)
Purchased at the above sale by the present owner
Purchased at the above sale by the present owner
Carl Wahlund, Sagan om Rosen, efter den af prof. Gaston Paris utgifna fornfranska dikten "le Conte de la Rose" i originalets versmått öfversatt, Stockholm, 1899, illustrated
Ulwa Neergaard, Carl Larsson, Stockholm, 1999, vol. I, p. 265, illustrated; vol. II, p. 78, no. 898A, catalogued
This watercolour was conceived as an illustration for Carl Wahlund's 1899 Swedish translation of French philologist Gaston Paris's reinterpretation of the Old French poem 'Le conte de la rose', an episode from the fourteenth-century Roman de Perceforest. Set in mythical British antiquity, this prose romance provides an original genesis of the Arthurian world.
The 'conte de la rose' tells the story of the poor knight Margon and his wife Lisana. Seeking employment at the court of King Perceforest, Margon must leave behind his beloved Lisana who, as a pledge of her undying fidelity, presents him with a casket containing a magical rose that will remain forever fresh so long as she is faithful.
Two rival knights, Nabon and Melean, jealous of the favour the Perceforest shows Margon for his sacrifice, and having espied Lisana's gift to him, try to connive Margon's downfall by seducing Lisana - however, their attempts fail, she remains steadfast, imprisons them in the tower of her castle, and the rose of her affection remains as fresh as on the day it was picked.
The 'conte de la rose' tells the story of the poor knight Margon and his wife Lisana. Seeking employment at the court of King Perceforest, Margon must leave behind his beloved Lisana who, as a pledge of her undying fidelity, presents him with a casket containing a magical rose that will remain forever fresh so long as she is faithful.
Two rival knights, Nabon and Melean, jealous of the favour the Perceforest shows Margon for his sacrifice, and having espied Lisana's gift to him, try to connive Margon's downfall by seducing Lisana - however, their attempts fail, she remains steadfast, imprisons them in the tower of her castle, and the rose of her affection remains as fresh as on the day it was picked.