19th century deer

19th century deer.
Bronze sculpture.
Unsigned.
Few scratches.
Measurements: 22 x 18 x 6 cm.

This sculpture is based on the pair of deer discovered in 1756 in the garden of Villa Papiri in Herculaneum, models of the year 100 B.C. today preserved in the Museo Archeologico Nazionale di Napoli, the Archaeological Museum of Naples. It responds in turn to the very long tradition in the history of art of animal themes, but it is only from the eighteenth century when they begin to occur with the characteristics that we see in this one: small format, "inconsequential subject matter" (no animal considered sacred by the commissioner...), interest in naturalism and detail, made in bronze... The rise of this type of work led to the birth of masters specialized in its realization with many variations (some are more directed to hunting dogs, others have work in which deer abound, others prefer more or less exotic animals, etc...) throughout Europe, being the French the most famous for the specialization of the foundries in this country and the control that the government exercised over the quality and care of them. Thus, we can mention masters such as Christopher Fratin (1801-1864), Paul Delabrierre (1829-1912), Auguste Nicolas Cain, etc., among the long list of sculptors dedicated to this theme.