CIRCLE OF AUGUSTIN PAJOU (1730-1809), LATE 18TH CENTURY

Augustin Pajou was among the most celebrated sculptors of late 18th century France. He is perhaps best known for his portraits of the mistress of Louis XV, Mme du Barry, although the recent exhibition devoted to the artist shows that he was also a talented sculptor of architectural relief decoration. The present two busts exhibit a number of stylistic similarities to known works by Pajou, such as the terracotta head of a young girl in the Getty Museum (Pajou, op. cit., no. 72, pp. 191-192), which displays a very similar facial type, with its small mouth and wide set eyes with incised pupils and irises.