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Truth and Falsehood: M.1A-1953

Object information

Current Location: In storage

Titles

Truth and Falsehood

Maker(s)

Sculptor: Stevens, Alfred George

Entities

Categories

Description

Bronze cast of one of the sketch models for the Wellington Monument in St Paul's Cathedral, London. Truth, with one foot pressed against the breast of Falsehood, is pulling out his endless tongue. His mask has been pushed up to reveal a brute's face, and his body ends in a coiling fishy tail. Black patina. On the side of the plinth is inscribed 'Alfred Stevens.No.1.'

Notes

History note: Sir Edmund Davis (brother-in-law to the testator); Mrs Constance Rea

Legal notes

Bequeathed by Mrs Constance Rea

Measurements and weight

Height: 23.0 in

Place(s) associated

  • London ⪼ England

Acquisition and important dates

Method of acquisition: Bequeathed (1953) by Rea, Constance

Dating

19th Century, Late-20th Century, Early#
After 1877 CE - Before 1914 CE

Note

This bronze and its pendant, 'Valour and Cowardice' (M.1B-1953), were cast from a pair of plaster models purchased by the financier and art patron Edmund Davis in 1877 at the posthumous sale of Stevens' studio contents. Davis had them cast (date unknown) and later gave them to his sister-in-law, Mrs Constance Rea. The lifetime plaster models from which Davis had these bronzes cast are most likely those which he gave to Manchester City Art Gallery in 1914 (1914.60 - 'Valour and Cowardice' and 1914.61 - 'Truth and Falsehood').

School or Style

New Sculpture Movement

People, subjects and objects depicted

Project

  • Sculpture UK

Components of the work

Sculpture Depth 43.1 cm Height 57.8 cm Width 29.4 cm

Materials used in production

Bronze

Techniques used in production

Casting (process) : Bronze, cast, and patinated black
Patinating

Inscription or legends present

  • Text: Alfred Stevens.No.1.
  • Location: On the side of the plinth
  • Method of creation: Inscribed

References and bibliographic entries

Identification numbers

Accession number: M.1A-1953
Primary reference Number: 12462
External ID: CAM_CCF_M_1A_1953
Stable URI

Audit data

Created: Saturday 6 August 2011 Updated: Monday 18 December 2023 Last processed: Monday 18 December 2023

Associated departments & institutions

Owner or interested party: The Fitzwilliam Museum
Associated department: Applied Arts

Citation for print

This record can be cited in the Harvard Bibliographic style using the text below:

The Fitzwilliam Museum (2024) "Truth and Falsehood" Web page available at: https://collection.beta.fitz.ms/id/object/12462 Accessed: 2024-11-02 20:23:25

Citation for Wikipedia

To cite this record on Wikipedia you can use this code snippet:

{{cite web|url=https://collection.beta.fitz.ms/id/object/12462 |title=Truth and Falsehood |author=The Fitzwilliam Museum|accessdate=2024-11-02 20:23:25|publisher=The University of Cambridge}}

API call for this record

To call these data via our API (remember this needs to be authenticated) you can use this code snippet:

https://collection.beta.fitz.ms/api/v1/objects/object-12462

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