The Metropolitan Museum of Art

The Mountain Man

Frederic Remington (American, Canton, New York 1861–1909 Ridgefield, Connecticut)

Date:: 1903, cast by March 1907
Medium:: Bronze
Dimensions:: 27 3/4 x 12 x 10 in., 51lb. (70.5 x 30.5 x 25.4 cm)
Classification:: Sculpture
Credit Line:: Rogers Fund, 1907
Accession Number:: 07.79

This artwork is currently on display in Gallery 765

Description

Remington modeled and copyrighted "The Mountain Man" in 1903. For his subject he chose a dramatic episode in the life of a French Canadian trapper: his and his mount's descent on an almost vertical slope. Man and horse work together to make the trip down a treacherously rocky decline. The horse has been given full rein to choose its pace and path; the rider leans sharply back and balances himself by holding onto the tail strap with his right hand. The Museum's bronze was cast in 1907 in the lost-wax technique and was purchased, along with three other statuettes, directly from the artist. Relatively few casts of "The Mountain Man" were produced during Remington's lifetime; the number is thought to be about fifteen.
Signatures, Inscriptions, and Markings

Signature: [on base, near horse's left front leg]: Copyright / Frederic Remington

Inscription: [base, below signature, stamped]: TIFFANY & Co.

Marking: [foundry mark, back of base]: Roman Bronze Works N.Y.; [cast number, underside of base, stamped] 9.
Provenance

the artist (until 1907)
See also
Who
Frederic Remington (22)
What
Metal (59,369)

Sculpture (24,350)

Copper alloy (16,630)

Bronze (11,628)
Where
North and Central America (81,404)

United States (78,109)
When
A.D. 1900-present (77,517)
In the Museum
American Paintings and Sculpture (5,395)
Heilbrunn Timeline of Art History
American Bronze Casting

Frederic Remington (1861–1909)

Bronze Statuettes of the American West, 1850–1915

America Comes of Age: 1876–1900

The United States and Canada, 1900 A.D.–present
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