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325 - Vincenzo GEMITO (Naples, 1852 – 1929) Water Carrier Bronze w…
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Estimate €3,000 - €4,000
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Description
Vincenzo GEMITO (Naples, 1852 – 1929) Water Carrier Bronze with a nuanced brown patina Signed ‘GEMITO’ and bearing the artist’s foundry mark ‘FONDERIA / GEMITO / NAPOLI’ on the jug Inscribed ‘DALL ORIGINALE / PROP. DEL RE DI NAPOLI / S.M. FRANCESCO II / NAPOLI GEMITO’ on the plinth Height: 55 cm Set on a red velvet plinth Total height: 63.5 cm Provenance: Collection of the writer Roger Peyrefitte (1907–2000); Acquired from a close friend of the writer around 2017 by the current owner; Private collection, Paris Related bibliography: Edited by Jean-Loup Champion, *Gemito: the sculptor of the Neapolitan soul*, exhibition catalogue, Paris, Petit Palais, 2019–2020, pp. 70 and 77 Related works: Vincenzo Gemito, Water-carrier or Aquaiolo, 1881, bronze statuette, H: 53.6 cm, Paris, Musée d’Orsay, no. RF 3212                Vincenzo Gemito, Water Carrier or Aquaiolo, bronze, H: 55 cm, Naples, Gargiulo Collection The Aquaiolo, one of the artist’s best-known works, was created by Gemito in Naples upon his return from Paris. It was commissioned by supporters of François II de Bourbon, who was then in exile. As part of this commission, the sculptor was asked to dress the young water-carrier in a pair of breeches. Subsequent bronze casts are sometimes fitted with removable breeches; this was the case with a copy that belonged to Ernest Messonier, who loaned it to the 1882 Salon. The aquaiolo was, however, originally conceived as a nude figure, and this is how both our bronze and the one in the Musée d’Orsay are depicted. Vincenzo GEMITO (Naples, 1852–1929)
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About the sale Old Masters & 19th-century masters
Auction location
Auction time 09/15/2026 at 11:00 AM
Pictures credits: Contact the Auction House
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