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拍品專文
In his book on the subject of the rhinoceros in European art, Clarke (op. cit.) outlines how the arrival of successive rhinoceros over the centuries affected the way in which this fantastic animal was depicted. Probably the most persistent image was that created by Dürer's engraving (see illustration), reproduced and disseminated after a female rhinoceros arrived in Portugal in 1515. Despite the presence of subsequent rhinos in the late 16th and then early 18th centuries, it was not really until the 'Dutch' rhinoceros which toured the continent between 1741 and 1749, that more naturalistic images begin to take hold.
Although many of the characteristics of the casting and the base would suggest a 17th century origin for the present bronze, the depiction of the rhinoceros seems to correspond most closely to images which date to the time of the Dutch rhino's appearance. In particular, details of the skin - still retaining a suggestion of the 'armour-like' skin of Dürer's engraving - along with the lowered head and the skewed ears are all highly reminiscent of the painting executed by Jean-Baptiste Oudry for the Salon of 1750, which was subsequently purchased by the Duke of Mecklenburg-Schwerin and taken to Germany, where it remains.
This bronze and the following lot are both from Croome Court, Wiltshire. They were almost certainly purchased by the dynamic 6th Earl of Coventry (1722-1809), who was among the most important patrons of his day, devoting large sums of money to building projects, collecting, and the commissioning of furniture and works of art.
Although many of the characteristics of the casting and the base would suggest a 17th century origin for the present bronze, the depiction of the rhinoceros seems to correspond most closely to images which date to the time of the Dutch rhino's appearance. In particular, details of the skin - still retaining a suggestion of the 'armour-like' skin of Dürer's engraving - along with the lowered head and the skewed ears are all highly reminiscent of the painting executed by Jean-Baptiste Oudry for the Salon of 1750, which was subsequently purchased by the Duke of Mecklenburg-Schwerin and taken to Germany, where it remains.
This bronze and the following lot are both from Croome Court, Wiltshire. They were almost certainly purchased by the dynamic 6th Earl of Coventry (1722-1809), who was among the most important patrons of his day, devoting large sums of money to building projects, collecting, and the commissioning of furniture and works of art.