Eugène Le Roux (aka Eugène Leroux) (1811–1863)
“Course
de Chevaux” (“Horse Race”) (aka “Entrance to the Arena”; “Course de Chevaux
Libres à Rome”; “Free Horse Racing in Rome”), c.1848, plate 30 from the series
of 144 plates (Volume 1 , 1ère Année, 2ème livraison [Plates 1–72]), “Les
Artistes Anciens et Modernes”, printed by Bertauts (fl.1830s–1880) in
Paris, after Théodore Géricault’s (aka
Jean Louis André Théodore Géricault) (1791–1824) painting,
“Course de Chevaux Libres à Rome”, in the Musée du
Louvre, Paris (https://collections.louvre.fr/en/ark:/53355/cl010059217
[R.F. 2042]).
Palais
des Beaux Arts de Lille offers the following description of one of Géricault’s studies
for the painting, “Course de Chevaux Libres à Rome”: (transl.) “It's February
in Rome, in the middle of Carnival. Today marks the traditional free-range
horse race, the highlight of the festivities. Grooms come to show off their
finest stallions, watched by the city's notables. The horses are let loose
along the Corso, Rome's main thoroughfare, which
then takes on the appearance of an arena” (https://pba.lille.fr/Collections/Chefs-d-OEuvre/Peintures-XVI-sup-e-sup-XXI-sup-e-sup-siecles/Course-de-chevaux-libres-a-Rome).
Lithograph
on buff chine collé on heavy wove paper with wide
margins as published and blind-stamped with the mark of “Les Artistes Anciens
et Modernes” (Lugt 36a) below the image borderline at centre.
Size:
(sheet) 31.5 x 44.8 cm; (chine collé) 19 x 25.5cm.
Numbered
in plate above the image borderline: (upper right) “30”.
Lettered
in plate below the image borderline: (left) “Géricault, pinx.”; (centre) “Imp.
Bertauts, Paris.”; (right) “E. Le Roux, lith/ Collection de Mr.
Marcille.”
Blind
stamped: (in oval at lower centre) “LES ARTISTES/ ANCIENS/ ET MODERNES”.
The
British Museum offers the following description of this print: “Plate 30: in
the foreground, Roman slaves restraining horses before their release into the
hippodrome, with classical buildings and crowds visible in the background;
after Théodore Géricault
Lithograph on buff chine collé” (https://www.britishmuseum.org/collection/object/P_1936-0302-14-31).
Condition:
a strong and well-printed impression with generously wide margins (as
published) in a near pristine condition with no tears, holes, folds, abrasions,
significant stains, or signs of handling.
I
am selling this dramatic and romantic lithograph showing stallions being restrained
before being freed into the Via del Corso—a central thoroughfare in Rome
connecting Piazza del Popolo and Piazza Venezia—that I understand had
been configured at the time into an arena during the February Carnival, for the
total cost of AU$244 (approximately US$160.60, EUR 136.27 or GBP 116.80),
including express mail shipping worldwide. Import duties, if any, are the
responsibility of the buyer.
If
you are interested in purchasing this beautifully executed lithograph after Géricault,
please contact me (oz_jim@printsandprinciples.com) and I will send you a PayPal
invoice to make the payment easy.
