Lot Essay
This head is reputed to have been removed from the Place Henri Quatre, demolished by the Revolutionaries in August 1792, presented to Mr Beaumont by John Milnes, and removed from the Orangerie, Bretton. At first glance it does indeed appear to be a portrait of King Henri IV of France (d. 1610), on account of the particular coiffure, trim of beard and moustache, and the long, aquiline nose. However, if a search is made among the work of his well-known court sculptors, Prieur, Dupré, Tremblay, Bourdin, Jacquet and Le Sueur, all of whom created notable state portraits of the monarch, their images all seem more ornamentally stylised and expressive of a stronger character.
By comparison, the features of the present head are more delicate, and more sensitively delineated. Furthermore, the hair, especially the beard, is less calligraphically arranged, and so perhaps Henri IV should be excluded.
This leads to consideration of another sculptor of the epoch, Francesco Fanelli (active circa 1609-1661), court sculptor to King Charles I. Fanelli's bronze portraits of Caroline courtiers have only recently been distinguished from the blander images of his rival, Le Sueur (cf. Whinney and Millar, op. cit.). These depict, in death, Richard Weston, Duke of Portland (d. 1635) in Winchester Cathedral; and Sir Robert Aiton (d. 1637) in Westminster Abbey. The treatment of the hair and of the delicate areas of skin around the eyes in both effigies is similar to that of the present head.
Fanelli was chosen by Thomas Howard, 2nd Earl of Arundel, in his will as executant of a grand tomb showing him "sitting and looking upwards" (cf. M. Hervey, Thomas Howard, Earl of Arundel, London, 1921, app. II, p. 460). This was never executed, but one wonders whether a model of Arundel's head, such as the present terracotta, might have been made from life by Fanelli. The features of the present head resemble those of the Earl as portrayed by Mytens in circa 1618 (cf. London, Tate Gallery, The Age of Charles I, painting in England 1620-1649, 1972, nos. 1 & 3), and later by Rubens and van Dyck (cf. Oxford, Ashmolean Museum, Thomas Howard, Earl of Arundel, 1986, nos. 1-3, 6 & 9).
By comparison, the features of the present head are more delicate, and more sensitively delineated. Furthermore, the hair, especially the beard, is less calligraphically arranged, and so perhaps Henri IV should be excluded.
This leads to consideration of another sculptor of the epoch, Francesco Fanelli (active circa 1609-1661), court sculptor to King Charles I. Fanelli's bronze portraits of Caroline courtiers have only recently been distinguished from the blander images of his rival, Le Sueur (cf. Whinney and Millar, op. cit.). These depict, in death, Richard Weston, Duke of Portland (d. 1635) in Winchester Cathedral; and Sir Robert Aiton (d. 1637) in Westminster Abbey. The treatment of the hair and of the delicate areas of skin around the eyes in both effigies is similar to that of the present head.
Fanelli was chosen by Thomas Howard, 2nd Earl of Arundel, in his will as executant of a grand tomb showing him "sitting and looking upwards" (cf. M. Hervey, Thomas Howard, Earl of Arundel, London, 1921, app. II, p. 460). This was never executed, but one wonders whether a model of Arundel's head, such as the present terracotta, might have been made from life by Fanelli. The features of the present head resemble those of the Earl as portrayed by Mytens in circa 1618 (cf. London, Tate Gallery, The Age of Charles I, painting in England 1620-1649, 1972, nos. 1 & 3), and later by Rubens and van Dyck (cf. Oxford, Ashmolean Museum, Thomas Howard, Earl of Arundel, 1986, nos. 1-3, 6 & 9).