Frédéric Auguste Bartholdi (1834-1904) - Lot 153

Frédéric Auguste Bartholdi (1834-1904) Lion of Belfort Cast between 1894 and 1901 Bronze with brown patina shaded with green Signed "ABartholdi" on the left side of the terrace Bears the founder's stamp "THIEBAUT FRERES / FONDEURS / PARIS" on the back of the terrace. H. 35 cm, terrace W. 54 x D. 15 cm Related works : -Frédéric Auguste Bartholdi, Le lion de Belfort ou Monument à la mémoire des victimes du siège de 1870, 1875-1880, Perugia pink sandstone, H. 11 x W. 22 m, Belfort; -Frédéric Auguste Bartholdi, Le lion de Belfort, 1878-1880, repoussé copper, H. 3.3 x W. 7.3 m, Paris, place Denfert-Rochereau. Related literature: -Régis Hubert, Bartholdi: le lion, cat. exp. exhibition, Colmar, Bartholdi Museum, June 5-September 5, 2004, Belfort, Museum of Art and History, September 18, 2004, January 2, 2005, Colmar, Bartholdi Museum, 2004. In 1872, the city of Belfort commissioned Alsatian sculptor Frédéric Auguste Bartholdi to create a monument commemorating the French army's victory in the siege of the city by the German Empire in February 1871. Having himself taken part in the Franco-Prussian war, Bartholdi sculpted a monumental lion in pink sandstone overlooking the town.