Study for one of the 'Chevaux de Marly'

ca. 1740

Not on view

This study is related to the Chevaux de Marly (Horses of Marly), one of the most famous large-scale marble sculptures of the period, commissioned by the king in 1739. The statues were moved inside the Louvre in 1985 and replaced with the cement copies that now flank the entrance to the Tuileries Gardens in Paris. Surviving correspondence between French officials details how two drawings by Coustou with profiles of the blocks were sent to Rome in 1740 to aid in the purchase of appropriate pieces of Carrara marble. This sheet, more of a diagram than a premire pensée, may have been one of those drawings.It is also possible that the drawing is connected to the installation or movement of the statue.

Artwork Details

Overview

Provenance

Exhibition History

Title: Study for one of the 'Chevaux de Marly'
Artist: Guillaume Coustou the Elder (French, Lyons 1677–1746 Paris)
Date: ca. 1740
Medium: Black chalk
Dimensions: sheet: 16 15/16 x 13 3/4 in. (43 x 35 cm)
Classification: Drawings
Credit Line: Harry G. Sperling Fund, 2006
Object Number: 2006.137
Curatorial Department: Drawings and Prints

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