The Bookworm - Carl Hans Bernewitz - 1848–1934

Height: approx. 22.5 cm
Width: approx. 12.5 cm
Base diameter: approx. 9 cm

Signed on the pedestal: C. Bernewitz
Foundry mark: Gladenbeck - Berlin

Bronze with a golden patina

Dintended to enrich the collection of the University of Kassel Library, this statuette was so successful that it was reissued in bronze in numerous copies. The “Bookworm,” Der Bücherwurm, sculpted around 1906, is an intimate bronze statuette that humorously embodies a voracious passion for reading.

It depicts a scholar wearing a frock coat, short breeches, and silk stockings tied below the knees with a satin bow, wearing heeled, buckled shoes, and sporting an 18th-century-style wig with a ponytail. His back is hunched over the open book he holds with both hands, his nose buried in the pages as he reads with absolute concentration. Our bookworm, completely absorbed by his passion and eager to read, has a thick volume wedged between his knees, while under each arm he clutches two more volumes that he also intends to consult.
Unlike the large official monuments sculpted by BERNEWITZ, this statuette is part of the genre realism movement and the tradition of small decorative figures. The emphasis is on the expressiveness of the posture and the meticulous rendering of the clothing and accessories.

To learn more: https://www.lestresorsdegamaliel.com/accueil/565-le-rat-de-bibliotheque-c-bernewitz.html

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