Skip to main content

Bust of Alexandre Dumas the Younger (1824-95): M.6-2015

Object information

Current Location: In storage

Titles

Bust of Alexandre Dumas the Younger (1824-95)

Maker(s)

Sculptor: Carpeaux, Jean-Baptiste

Entities

Categories

Description

Bronze bust of Alexandre Dumas the Younger (1824-95)

Notes

History note: The Dumas family cast.

Legal notes

Sir Ivor and Lady Batchelor Bequest through The Art Fund

Measurements and weight

Depth: 24 cm
Height: 45.7 cm
Width: 33 cm

Acquisition and important dates

Method of acquisition: Bequeathed (2015-04-27) by Batchelor, Ivor, Sir and Lady

Dating

19th Century
Production date: after AD 1874 : Model: 1872. Present bronze cast at an unknown date after 1874

Note

Dumas was a French author and playwright. His most famous work is the romantic novel, The Lady of the Camellias, on which Verdi's famous opera, La Traviata, was based. Carpeaux and Dumas were close friends. The original plaster model of the bust was made in 1872 and a marble version carved in 1873. The marble was exhibited at the Paris Salon in 1874 and then given by Dumas to the Comédie Française, the State-owned theatre in Paris, where it remains today. Carpeaux gave a plaster of the bust (together with a plaster bust of Dumas' wife) to Dumas as gifts (now Musée d'Orsay, Paris). As with other sculptures by Carpeaux, the bust of Dumas was reproduced as an edition in both bronze and terracotta in three different size: 82cm (the height of the original model), 66cm, and 47cm. The present bronze is an example of the smallest.

School or Style

French

Project

  • Sculpture UK

Components of the work

Sculpture Depth 21.9 cm Height 38 cm Width 33.1 cm

Materials used in production

Bronze

Techniques used in production

Casting (process) : Bronze, cast and chased
Patination

Inscription or legends present

  • Text: 'M11' Al sommo Pensieroso / Alexandre Dumas fils / suo Amico JB Carpeaux 1873
  • Type: Inscription

Identification numbers

Accession number: M.6-2015
Primary reference Number: 201416
Old object number: CAM_CCF_M_6_2015
Stable URI

Audit data

Created: Thursday 28 May 2015 Updated: Saturday 14 March 2020 Last processed: Friday 8 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) "Bust of Alexandre Dumas the Younger (1824-95)" Web page available at: https://collection.beta.fitz.ms/id/object/201416 Accessed: 2024-11-21 23:44:24

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/201416 |title=Bust of Alexandre Dumas the Younger (1824-95) |author=The Fitzwilliam Museum|accessdate=2024-11-21 23:44:24|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-201416

Sign up for updates

Updates about future exhibitions and displays, family activities, virtual events & news. You'll be the first to know...