Lot 298
298
A FRENCH BRONZE GROUP OF 'LE BAISER DONNÉ'
No VAT will be charged on the hammer price, but VA… Read more
A FRENCH BRONZE GROUP OF 'LE BAISER DONNÉ'

AFTER JEAN-ANTOINE HOUDON, PROBABLY CIRCA 1800

Details
A FRENCH BRONZE GROUP OF 'LE BAISER DONNÉ'
AFTER JEAN-ANTOINE HOUDON, PROBABLY CIRCA 1800
Set on a white and grey marble and ormolu plinth
11in. (28cm.) high overall
Special notice
No VAT will be charged on the hammer price, but VAT at 15% will be added to the buyer's premium which is invoiced on a VAT inclusive basis. This lot will be removed to an off-site warehouse at the close of business on the day of sale - 2 weeks free storage

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Lot Essay

Le Baiser donné is without doubt Jean-Antoine Houdon's most erotically charged composition. Originally conceived in circa 1772, when Houdon sent a plaster version to the duke of Saxe-Gotha in Germany, this highly ingenious double-bust depicts two idealised young lovers bound by a chain of roses in a sensual embrace. The visual vocabulary that Houdon used in the conception of this group is rich and symbolic; the boy's hair is tied in a ribbon, the girl's is braided and bound by a string of pearls, combined they are the symbolic attributes of Venus and imply the idea of Profane Love.

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