BY ALPHONSE VAN BEURDEN, DATED 1901

Born in Antwerp, Belgium, in 1854 (d. 1938), Alphonse Van Beurden studied at the Acadmie d'Anvers where he was awarded the first prize in 1874 and 1877, and subsequently became Professeur de dessin linaire in 1885. He exhibited his sculptures at the 1885 Salon d'Anvers, the 1889 and 1890 Salons triennaux de Bruxelles and the 1890 Salon triennal d'Anvers. He was awarded a mention honorable in Paris in 1890 and a gold medal in Munich in 1891. His name was listed in the London Royal Academy's catalogue from 1887 onwards. By 1890, he became an ivory sculptor, exhibiting in Antwerp, Munich and Berlin. He participated in the carving of the faades of the Bourse du Diamant and the Muse Royal des Beaux-Arts in Antwerp.

This bronze and ivory group may be the one referred to as Le Charmeur de serpents in E. Bnzit, Dictionnaire des peintres, sculpteurs, dessinateurs et graveurs, Paris, 1976.