Laurent-Honoré Marqueste

Overall the condition of the marble is very good with minor dirt and wear consistent with age. There are a few minor dirt residues to the surface including to the proper left interior thigh and to the proper left arm. There is veining to the marble consistent with the material including to the proper right buttock. There are a few very minor chips including to the edges of the integral marble base. There are a few very minor possible abrasions including to the proper right side of the lower back and to the proper left arm.
"In response to your inquiry, we are pleased to provide you with a general report of the condition of the property described above. Since we are not professional conservators or restorers, we urge you to consult with a restorer or conservator of your choice who will be better able to provide a detailed, professional report. Prospective buyers should inspect each lot to satisfy themselves as to condition and must understand that any statement made by Sotheby's is merely a subjective, qualified opinion. Prospective buyers should also refer to any Important Notices regarding this sale, which are printed in the Sale Catalogue.
NOTWITHSTANDING THIS REPORT OR ANY DISCUSSIONS CONCERNING A LOT, ALL LOTS ARE OFFERED AND SOLD AS IS" IN ACCORDANCE WITH THE CONDITIONS OF BUSINESS PRINTED IN THE SALE CATALOGUE."

A student of both Jouffroy and Falguière, Marqueste’s talent was recognised from a young age, and he was awarded the Prix de Rome in 1871. The artist excelled in the coming years, and his reputation grew rapidly; the third class medal he was awarded for his Salon debut in 1874, for his plaster bas-relief Jacob and the Angel, was quickly followed by the first class two years later.

His oeuvre, comprised of a prolific output, is characterised for the most part by mythological and allegorical works, as well as portraits of historical and contemporary personalities such as Rousseau and Delibes. His sculptures demonstrate an austere quality inherent in academic neoclassicism, with a creativity and dexterity that set him apart from his rivals.

Sincerely appreciated in his own time, Marqueste became one of the most distinguished sculptors of the Third Republic. He was admitted to the Légion d’Honneur in 1884, being promoted to Commander in 1904, and enjoyed extensive patronage for some of Paris’s most prestigious cultural projects.

Among these were the monument to Waldeck-Rousseau in the gardens of the Tuileries, a bronze allegory of L’Art outside the Hôtel de Ville, and an allegory of Toulouse, Marqueste’s birthplace, for the Gare d’Orsay. His monument La France de Louis XIV for the Pont Alexandre III earned him the Grand Prix of the Exposition Universelle of 1900.

RELATED LITERATURE
J. Mackay, The Dictionary of Sculptors in Bronze, Suffolk, 1977, p. 251; P. Kjellberg, Bronzes of the 19th Century: Dictionary of Sculptors, Pennsylvania, 1994, pp. 460-461; E. Bénézit, Dictionnaire critique et documentaire des Peintres, Sculpteurs, Dessinateurs et Graveurs, Paris, 1999, p. 249