A PAIR OF PATINATED PLASTER FIGURES OF TORCH-BEARING VESTALS
A PAIR OF PATINATED PLASTER FIGURES OF TORCH-BEARING VESTALS
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Specified lots (sold and unsold) marked with a fil… Read more
A PAIR OF PATINATED PLASTER FIGURES OF TORCH-BEARING VESTALS

BY HUMPHREY HOPPER (1767-1844), 1808

Details
A PAIR OF PATINATED PLASTER FIGURES OF TORCH-BEARING VESTALS
BY HUMPHREY HOPPER (1767-1844), 1808
Each semi-draped figure holding a brass nozzles in their upheld arm on an integrally modelled rectangular plinth and later simulated marble pedestal; the reverse of one inscribed 'Dec. 1808 H. Hopper. London' the other 'Pub. July 4th 1808 H. Hopper Sculp. London'; minor cracks
The larger figure: 47 in. (119.5 cm.) high
The pedestals: 33 ¼ in. (85 cm.) high; 20 in. (51 cm.) wide; 20 in. (51 cm.) deep
Literature
COMPARATIVE LITERATURE:
R. Gunnis, Dictionary of British Sculptors 1660-1851, London, rev. ed. 1964, p. 209.
Special notice
Specified lots (sold and unsold) marked with a filled square not collected from Christie’s by 5.00 pm on the day of the sale will, at our option, be removed to Cadogan Tate. Christie’s will inform you if the lot has been sent offsite. Our removal and storage of the lot is subject to the terms and conditions of storage which can be found at Christies.com/storage. Please call Christie’s Client Service 24 hours in advance to book a collection time at Cadogan Tate Ltd. All collections will be by pre-booked appointment only. Tel: +44 (0)20 7839 9060 Email: cscollectionsuk@christies.com. If the lot remains at Christie’s it will be available for collection on any working day 9.00 am to 5.00 pm. Lots are not available for collection at weekends.

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Lot Essay

Born in County Durham in 1767, and a student at the Royal Academy Schools from 1801 onwards, Humphrey Hopper achieved fame in 1803 at the mature age of 36 when he was awarded a gold medal for his group of the Death of Meleager. He henceforth worked extensively on the design, and creation, of monuments, such as his unfairly maligned monument to General Hay in St. Paul's Cathedral (1814, Gunnis, loc. cit.). In his latter years, however, he excelled in the production of portrait busts and small funerary monuments, many of which were embellished with elegant mourning vestals modelled in a highly classical style.

Between 1807 and 1813 Hopper exhibited a number of mythological figures in plaster designed to hold lamps at the Royal Academy that were from the same source as his mourning vestal figures. Although numerous copies after his original models exist, a number of signed and dated plaster examples also survive, including the set of four figures sold in the sale at Hackwood Park (Christie's, 20-22 April 1998, lot 159, £45,500 including premium), a further pair sold at Ven House (Christie's, 21-22 June 1999, lot 308, £25,300 including premium) as well as the pair offered here. In each instance Hopper displays the same elegant rendition of the female form and a highly accomplished treatment of the classically modelled drapery.

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