ISIDORE BONHEUR (1827-1901)

Although best-known as one of the 19th century's most distinguished animalier sculptors, Isidore-Jules Bonheur (1827-1901) initially worked as a painter. In 1849 he entered the Ecole des Beaux-Arts in Paris and from then onwards concentrated solely on sculpture, whereupon his true talent in the medium became apparent. Of great significance to the careers of both Isidore and Rosa, their younger sister, Juliette (1830-1891), married the master caster Hippolyte Peyrol whose bronze foundry in Paris is rightly considered one of the finest of the period. These close ties resulted in the production of exceptionally cast and finely chased bronzes, often identified, as here, by Peyrol's miniscule cachet.

The same model, mounted on a marble and ormolu plinth, is illustrated in J. Horswell, Bronze Sculpture of "Les Amimaliers", Woodbridge, 1971, p. 209.