JEAN-LÉON GÉROME (French, 1824-1904). PLAUDITE CIVES, ( Gladiator with Lion), inscribed. Bronze - 15 in. x 21 in. x 11 in. Estimate $6,000-8,000
SCULPTURE: One of the more autobiographical of Gerome's inventions, a Roman gladiator is depicted with a slain lion (the artist's middle name) and "bows to the public, looking up for appreciation. Under his feet the plaque 'Plaudite Cives' or 'Applaud, Citizens' " (Gerald Ackerman, Catalogue Raisonné (ACR 1986-2000) #S45.) This work appeared in the Paris Salon of 1898 where the Russian merchant P.M. Tretyakov bought it for his famous Moscow Gallery.
PROVENANCE: Sotheby's, New York, NY January 19, 1995 Lot # 289
Collection of an art historian specializing in the works of Jean Leon Gerome.
