Jean-Léon Gérôme

Prince Paul Murat collects ion, 1902
Thence by descent

Paris, Salon de 1897, p. 285, no. 2987
G. Sheffer, Le Salon de 1897, Paris, 1897, p. 58-59
G. Lafenestre, Les Salons de 1897, La Revue des Deux Mondes, Paris, July 1, p. 177-191, p. 178
Cat. Jean-Léon Gérôme 1824-1904. Peintre, sculpteur et graveur. Ses Oeuvres conservées dans les collects ions françaises publiques et privées, Vesoul, 1981, p. 150, n° 189
Cat. Panama Pacific International Exposition, Retrospective Sculpture, San Francisco, 1915, n° 86
S. Lami, Dictionnaire des Sculpteurs de l'école française au XIXe siècle, Paris, 1919, t. 3, p. 56
Les Archives Murat aux archives nationales, Paris, Imprimerie nationale, 1967, p. 209
Cat. Jean-Léon Gérôme, Sculpteur et peintre de l'Art Officiel, Paris, Galerie Tanagra, April 25 - Mai 15, 1974, p. 44, n° 15

This important piece celebrating Bonaparte's military victories depicts the mounted general entering Cairo on July 21, 1798.  The sculpture is mounted on a wood and gilt bronze temple with a seated Egyptian scribe at its base. The armed Victory figure emerges from this temple. Between the columns, we can read the future Emperor's collaborators' names: Menou, Berthollet, Fourier; Lannes, Larrey, Murat; Kléber, Denon, Reynier; Desaix, Monge, Baraguay d'Hilliers. His victories are inscribed along the entablature: Gaza, Jaffa; Le Mont Thabor, Aboukir; Alexandrie, Les Pyramides; Le Caire et El Arish.

The original monument was exhibited in Paris, in the Salon of 1894 (n° 2987) and described as Bonaparte - Entrée au Caire. Immediately it was purchased by the French state for the Luxembourg museum. There are numerous bronze replicas, cast by Siot-Decauville in two different sizes (16 1/4  in. and 32 2/3  in.) but only a few versions of the present model are known.  A version was sold in the Joey and Toby Tanenbaum collects ion sale at Replica Shoes 's New York, on May 26, 1994. That cast was dedicated to Mr Maxime Duval (1984-1912), deputy director of the Société Générale, who was promoted as administrator in 1903. It seems that a third cast was exhibited in London at the Franco British Exhibition in 1908 (n° 950).

The present work was purchased in 1902 by Murat under the name Campagne d'Egypte and descended through his family.