French Bronze La Source Nude Figure After Auguste Moreau (French, 1834–1917

French Bronze La Source Nude Figure After Auguste Moreau, Circa 1900

After Auguste Moreau (French, 1834–1917)

An elegant French Belle Époque bronze of La Source, depicting a classical female nude enveloped by flowing drapery and raised upon a substantial black marble base.

Highlights

• Graceful French School bronze depicting the allegorical figure of La Source, or The Spring

• Dating to circa 1900

• Catalogued as after Auguste Moreau

• Finely modelled nude female figure surrounded by flowing drapery

• Attractive warm brown-green patina with naturally exposed golden-bronze highlights

• Mounted upon a shaped black marble base believed to be original

• Substantial weight of approximately 4.7 kg

• Impressive overall height of 43 cm

• Unsigned, with the attribution based upon the model and stylistic comparison

• A refined example of French Belle Époque decorative sculpture

• Curated, researched and catalogued by Cheshire Antiques Consultant LTD®

• Supplied with a Certificate of Sale & Dealer Attribution from Cheshire Antiques Consultant LTD®

Introduction

A graceful and substantial French School bronze depicting La Source, or The Spring, catalogued as after the French sculptor Auguste Moreau (1834–1917) and dating to circa 1900.

The sculpture portrays a youthful nude woman turning her head modestly to one side while gathering a sweeping length of drapery around her body. The fabric spirals through the composition in broad, fluid folds, introducing an almost water-like rhythm and transforming the classical female nude into an allegorical representation of purity, renewal and the life-giving qualities of a natural spring.

The sculptural treatment combines classical poise with the softer naturalism and sinuous movement associated with French decorative sculpture around the turn of the 20th century.

The bronze retains an attractive warm brown-green patina with areas of naturally exposed golden-bronze colour upon the raised surfaces. It is mounted upon a shaped polished black marble base, believed to be original, creating a strong visual contrast with the warmer tones of the bronze.

At 43 cm high and weighing approximately 4.7 kg, the sculpture possesses an impressive physical presence while remaining an elegant scale for display.

Catalogue Details

Artist or Model: After Auguste Moreau

Artist's Dates: 1834–1917

Title: La Source (The Spring)

Date: Circa 1900

Origin: French School

Period: Belle Époque

Style: Classical Revival with Art Nouveau influence

Medium: Patinated bronze

Base: Shaped black marble, believed original

Signature: Unsigned

Subject: Allegorical female nude representing La Source

Overall Height: 43 cm

Weight: Approximately 4.7 kg

Catalogue Note

The composition of La Source is structured around a gentle turning movement that gives the sculpture an appealing sense of fluidity when viewed from different angles.

The figure subtly shifts her weight while looking modestly over her shoulder. One raised arm gathers the drapery, which passes around the body in broad rhythmic folds. These sweeping lines soften the classical nudity while simultaneously creating the visual impression of continuously moving water.

The modelling contrasts the smooth surfaces of the female figure with the more energetic treatment of the fabric. As light moves across the bronze, the interaction between anatomy, drapery and patination creates a changing pattern of highlights and shadow.

This combination of idealised anatomy and natural movement places the sculpture firmly within the tradition of French decorative sculpture flourishing during the Belle Époque.

While its subject and composition relate to documented versions of La Source associated with Auguste Moreau, the present bronze is unsigned. It is therefore catalogued responsibly as after Auguste Moreau, rather than being presented as an autograph sculpture by the artist.

La Source: An Allegory Of Renewal

The French title La Source translates as The Source or The Spring.

Within European art, springs and sources were traditionally personified as youthful female figures representing flowing water, natural abundance, purity and renewal.

The theme enjoyed particular prominence during the 19th century. Jean-Auguste-Dominique Ingres's celebrated painting La Source, completed in 1856, became one of the best-known interpretations of the female nude as a poetic personification of water.

The present bronze belongs to this broader allegorical tradition.

Here, the spiralling drapery assumes an almost liquid quality, flowing around the figure and visually connecting the female form with the ideas of movement, water and natural vitality embodied by the subject.

Auguste Moreau

Auguste Moreau (1834–1917) was born in Dijon and belonged to the prominent Moreau family of French sculptors.

He became particularly associated with elegant allegorical figures, graceful female subjects and sentimental compositions combining academic modelling with romantic naturalism.

Moreau's sculptural vocabulary frequently incorporated youthful figures, flowing fabric, flowers and other natural motifs. Such compositions proved particularly suited to the decorative tastes of late 19th and early 20th-century France.

His works contributed to a broader sculptural tradition in which classical and allegorical subjects were interpreted with increasing naturalism, movement and decorative appeal.

Documented versions of La Source bearing Auguste Moreau's signature are known. The present sculpture is unsigned and differs in scale from documented larger signed examples. Accordingly, the attribution after Auguste Moreau represents the appropriate and responsible catalogue designation on the presently available evidence.

Artistic Context

French sculpture around 1900 brought together several overlapping artistic traditions.

Academic sculptors continued to draw upon classical mythology, allegory and idealised anatomy, while the emerging Art Nouveau movement encouraged more fluid silhouettes, organic lines and a closer visual relationship between the human figure and the natural world.

The present bronze reflects elements of both traditions.

The figure's idealised proportions and allegorical subject are rooted in classical artistic convention, while the spiralling drapery and flowing profile display the lyrical movement increasingly associated with Belle Époque and Art Nouveau decorative design.

This synthesis gives the sculpture a particularly attractive transitional character, combining established academic ideals with the more fluid decorative language emerging around the turn of the century.

No foundry mark has been identified. The bronze is therefore not assigned to a particular foundry or specific casting process in the absence of further documentary or technical evidence.

Patina And Marble Base

The bronze retains an attractive brown-green patina enlivened by warm golden-bronze undertones.

Gentle historic rubbing to prominent areas, particularly around the arm and shoulder, has exposed areas of the natural bronze beneath. Rather than detracting from the sculpture, this variation gives the surface an established character and helps articulate the modelling.

The figure is mounted upon a shaped polished black marble base that provides both physical stability and a handsome visual contrast with the bronze.

The marble base is believed to be original to the sculpture.

Provenance

Private collection.

Subsequently curated, researched and catalogued by Cheshire Antiques Consultant LTD®.

Dimensions And Weight

Overall height: 43 cm / approximately 16.9 inches

Base width: 12.5 cm / approximately 4.9 inches

Base depth: 11 cm / approximately 4.3 inches

Maximum width across figure: 14.5 cm / approximately 5.7 inches

Weight: Approximately 4.7 kg / 10.4 lb

All measurements and weights are approximate.

Condition Report

The sculpture is presented in good original condition consistent with its circa 1900 date.

The brown-green patina remains deep and attractive, with naturally exposed warm golden-bronze accents contributing to the definition and character of the modelling.

There is surface rubbing across prominent areas of the arm and shoulder, exposing the natural bronze beneath. Minor casting pores and small surface flecks are visible upon close inspection.

The black marble base displays age-related surface wear together with several minor chips.

No cracks or repairs have been noted during visual examination. The figure remains secure upon its base and presents attractively from multiple viewing angles.

Please examine all accompanying photographs carefully, as they form an important part of the condition report.

Worldwide Shipping

Worldwide shipping is available.

The sculpture will be professionally packed with particular attention given to protecting the projecting limbs, flowing drapery and marble base. It will be fully insured and dispatched using an appropriate tracked service.

Please contact us if you require additional photographs, condition information or an international shipping quotation.

Certificate of Sale & Dealer Attribution

The artwork will be supplied with a Certificate of Sale & Dealer Attribution issued by Cheshire Antiques Consultant LTD®, recording the artwork’s catalogue details, attribution, provenance as stated, and details of the sale. This document accompanies the work as part of its ongoing ownership and provenance record.

Attribution and Research

The historical observations, provenance research, attribution analysis and contextual commentary presented within this catalogue entry represent the professional opinion of Cheshire Antiques Consultant LTD®. They are offered in good faith as informed scholarly assessments based upon the available evidence, comparative research, published reference material and our experience within the international fine art market.

These observations should be understood as professional opinions rather than definitive statements of fact or guarantees of authorship, attribution, date, origin, provenance or historical interpretation. As with all historic works of art, future documentary discoveries, technical examination, conservation analysis or advances in academic research may refine, expand or revise current interpretations.

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Specialising in carefully curated British and European fine art, antiques and historic works of art.

Every artwork is professionally researched and catalogued using comparative scholarship, published reference material and more than two decades of experience within the international fine art market. We are committed to offering collectors works of artistic and historical merit accompanied by transparent provenance research, detailed catalogue descriptions and professional, client-focused service.

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