FRENCH SCULPTURE CENSUS / RÉPERTOIRE DE SCULPTURE FRANÇAISE after: COYSEVOX, Antoine Lyon, Rhône 1640 - Paris 1720 Louis II de Bourbon, prince de Condé, dit Le Grand Condé (1621-1686) Louis II de Bourbon, prince de Condé, known as "The Grand Condé" (1621-1686) 19th c. cast from a 1686 model bronze bust 15 9 3 22 ?16 x 26 ?16 x 13 ?4 in. stamped under right arm: A. COYSEVOX F / 1686 Acc. No.: 1942.9.110 Credit Line: Widener Collection Photo credit: © Artist : Washington, D.C., District of Columbia, The National Gallery of Art www.nga.gov Provenance Duveen Brothers, Inc., London and New York 1901, 8 November, Purchased by Peter A.B. or Joseph Widener, Lynnewood Hall, Elkins Park, Pennsylvania by inheritance from the Estate of Peter A.B. Widener by gift through power of appointment of Joseph E. Widener, Elkins Park, Pennsylvania 1942, gift to the National Gallery of Art, Washington Bibliography Museum's website, 20 July 2011 1922 Keller-Dorian Georges Keller-Dorian, Antoine Coysevox, Catalogue raisonné de son oeuvre, 1922, n° 50 1965 NGA Washington Summary Catalogue of European Paintings and Sculpture, National Gallery of Art, Washington, 1965 p. 149 1968 NGA Washington European Paintings and Sculpture, Illustrations, National Gallery of Art, Washington, 1968, p. 132, repr. 1994 NGA Washington Sculpture: An Illustrated Catalogue, National Gallery of Art, Washington, 1994, p. 49, repr. 2008 Bresc-Bautier Geneviève Bresc-Bautier, Entry on the bust of The Grand Condé, in Cast in Bronze. French Sculpture from Renaissance to Revolution, Edited by Geneviève Bresc-Bautier and Guilhem Scherf, with James David Draper for the English-language edition, Paris, Musée du Louvre, October 22, 2008-January 19, 2009; New York, The Metropolitan Museum of Art, February 24- May 24, 2009; Los Angeles, The J. Paul Getty Museum, June 30-September 27, 2009, Musée du Louvre Editions / Somogy Editions d'Art, 2008, p. 342-345, the NGA bust is mentioned p. 342 Related works Bust in NGA is considered as a 19th century replica of the original bust in Paris, in the Louvre (M.R. 3343). A terracotta version of the Louvre's bronze, in a private collection . A terracotta version in the Condé Museum, Chantilly (France). A version in the Walter Arts Museum, Baltimore. Comment Curatorial file in NGA, 21 July 2011: Despite being signed and dated, it is probable that the bust is a nineteenth century replica of the autentic seventeenth version now in the Louvre. For example, examination of the interior of the sculpture revealed the presence of charred sand particles, strongly suggesting the use of the sand casting process. The process was popular in France for much of the nineteenth century. Musée du Louvre website, entry by Valérie Montalbetti (accessed November 14, 2018): Coysevox, the great portraitist under Louis XIV, creates a very lifelike image of this ambivalent figure, victor at the Battle of Rocroi. The bust was executed in 1688, two years after the death of the Grand Condé. Without masking his ugliness, the artist has managed to convey the fierce, authoritarian nobility of this man, whose eagle-like profile is crowned with a leonine mane. This bust was made for the mansion of the model's nephew, the Prince de Conti, in Paris. The Grand Condé Prince of royal blood and cousin to the king, at the age of twenty-two Condé was victorious at the Battle of Rocroi (Ardennes, 1643), which prevented France from being invaded by the Spanish armies in the north. Taking the side of the Fronde, which on occasions served the enemy, Condé was a proud, imperious man whose personal gain came before the general interest. Despite being of a violent disposition and a libertine, he was also a cultured man, who counted among his friends the theologian Bossuet, the playwright Molière, the moralist La Bruyère, and the landscape architect Le Nôtre. The commission Antoine Coysevox, the great portraitist under Louis XIV, executed this bronze bust in 1688, two years after the death of the Grand Condé. The commission came from the Prince de Conti, the model's nephew, and cost the handsome sum of 1,600 livres. Although the portrait is retrospective, it draws on a terra-cotta bust (Chantilly, Musée Condé) that was probably executed by the sculptor during Condé's lifetime. The portrait Coysevox creates a powerful and lifelike image of Condé, conveying both the physical ugliness and nobility of the figure. A fierce energy emanates from the thin face, with its scornful lips and domineering look, framed by naturally long, wavy hair like a lion's mane. The tension in the face, with its eagle-like profile and hooked nose, makes the veins stand out in the temples. The coat is trimmed with fleurs-de-lis - the royal emblem - indicating the model's rank as a prince of royal blood. Condé is heroized by Roman-style armor, whose elements emphasize the courage, power, and pride of the great military leader: a shoulder piece with a lion's muzzle, and on the chest a griffin (a mythical creature half-eagle, half-lion). Perfect technique and a fine patina further enhance this magnificent portrait. Bibliography Keller-Dorian Georges, Antoine Coysevox, Paris, 1920, I, p. 62-63. Chefs-d'oeuvre du musée du Louvre. Bronzes de la Renaissance à Rodin, Tokyo, Metropolitan Art Museum, 1988, p. 235. Masterpieces from the Louvre. French bronzes from the Renaissance to Rodin, Brisbane (Australie), Queensland Art Gallery, 1988, p. 68-69..