catalog text
"SEATED SAPPHO"
François Mage (French, died 1910)
Patinated bronze over rouge marble base | Signed "Mage spt" on leg
Item # 106EUT17P
A fine sand-cast model of a seated figure of Sappho circa the third quarter of the 19th century, she is an attractive composition featuring a Neo-Greco overall inspiration with a classical garment draped with endless folds over her lounging figure; her head is slightly reclined as she watches the bird that has found rest on her finger while considering a drink from her cup. She sits on a very finely modeled Grecian klismo chair, the leg signed in script "Mage spt". The model is situated over a faceted rouge marble base on a gilt bronze footer.
FRANCOIS MAGE
Born in Chalon-sur-Saòne (Saône-et-Loire), François Mage was a student of François Rude. He exhibited at the Salon starting in 1861 and sent his last work there in 1875. These include L'enlévement de Psyché (1861), Perrette (1864), Le premier pas (1865), Le Prologue (1866), and Danseuse (1875).
Artist Listings & Bibliography:
- Dictionnaire des Sculpteurs de l'École Française, Vol. III, Stanislas Lami, Kraus, 1970, p. 369
- E. Benezit Dictionary of Artists, Vol. IX, Gründ, 2006, p. 21
Measurements: 18 1/8" H x 17 1/2" W x 8 1/2" D
Condition Report:
Beneath the outstretched hand shows a crack in one finger (not pictured, request an image); outstretched arm with a slight wiggle in the joint, no visual flaw in this; very minor wear to original patina, this overall remaining in very good condition. A fine presentation.