Borghese Gladiator, Bronze Sculpture. France, 17th Century.

France, early 17th century Artist: Circle of Guillaume de Berthelot (1580–1648)

Bronze with a brown patina, finely chiseled, depicting the famous Borghese Gladiator, an iconic figure of heroic antiquity. The work rests on an base of antique black marble, whose simplicity highlights the dynamic tension of the body and the anatomical precision of the model.

Dimensions Total height: 48 cm Height of the bronze: 34 cm

The ancient statue of the Borghese Gladiator, a Hellenistic sculpture attributed to the sculptor Agasias, was discovered in the early 17th century near Nettuno, south of Rome. First mentioned in 1611 during its restoration, it quickly became one of the jewels of the Borghese collection. Interpretations of the figure varied over time: gladiator, boxer, discus thrower, Ajax, or Leonidas. Winckelmann saw it as a Greek hero rather than a gladiator, since gladiatorial combat did not exist in Agasias’s time. This figure, a symbol of a heroic and virile Antiquity, inspired many sculptors from the 17th to the 19th century.

Our bronze most likely comes from the workshop or circle of Guillaume de Berthelot, a French sculptor trained in Rome in the early 17th century. Berthelot studied and restored numerous antiquities, from which he drew much of his stylistic vocabulary. Upon his return to France in 1620, he became the official sculptor to Marie de Médicis, and later worked for Richelieu. His most prestigious commissions came from the Borghese family, which explains the widespread circulation of models inspired by their collections.

Since bronzes are by nature multiples, several versions of the Borghese Gladiator circulated among European workshops. A comparable version sold for €10,880 at Bonhams (see link below): Borghese Gladiator Bronze – Bonhams

https://www.bonhams.com/auction/28520/lot/37/figure-en-bronze-representant-le-gladiateur-borghese-entourage-de-guillaume-berthelot-1580-1648-france-after-the-antique-first-half-of-the-17th-century-bronze-figure-of-the-borghese-gladiator-circle-of-guillaume-berthelot-1580-1648-French-after-the-antique-first-half-17th-century/

·       Sotheby’s 2005 – London, July 8, 2005, lot 59

·       Private collection version – Leithe‑Jasper & Wengraf, op. cit., no. 35, fig. 1, p. 298

Sold with certificate of authenticity.