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bronze statue of a woman sitting on a chair with a dogbronze statue of a woman sitting on a bench with two dogsbronze statue of a woman reading a book with two dogsbronze statue of a woman and two children sitting on a benchbronze statue of a man and a woman holding a babybronze statue of a woman sitting on a stool with two dogsbronze statue of a woman with a dog on her backa statue of a woman sitting on a bench with a dogbronze statue of a woman and child sitting on a benchbronze statue of a woman and child sitting on a stoola bronze statue of a woman holding a book and a childan antique brass plate with a black and gold design
La Souveraine

183 - According to Garci Rodríguez DE MONTALVO (c. 1450 – d. c. 15…
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Estimate €300 - €500
Sale commission
Description
According to Garci Rodríguez DE MONTALVO (c. 1450 – d. c. 1505) and Nicolas HERBERAY DES ESSARTS (d. 1552), A rare bronze group in the Troubadour style, with a brown and gilded patina, depicting a woman reading *Amadis de Gaule* to a young child whilst a greyhound watches them both; 19th century, unsigned - H. approx. 40 cm, W. 29 cm, D. 17 cm COMMENTARY: *Amadis de Gaule* is one of the most influential chivalric romances in European literature. Of medieval Iberian origin — probably Portuguese or Castilian —, it was edited and published in 1508 in Zaragoza by Garci Rodríguez de Montalvo, who claimed to have revised the first three books and added a fourth of his own composition. The story recounts the exploits of Amadis, a perfect knight of secret royal lineage, devoted body and soul to his lady Oriane, in a world populated by giants, enchanters and mysterious islands where courtly love and chivalrous loyalty are held up as absolute values. The work’s success was phenomenal and quickly spread beyond the Iberian Peninsula. Translated into French as early as 1540 by Nicolas Herberay des Essarts — a translation which itself became a literary masterpiece — *Amadis* established itself as the definitive novel of the European nobility of the sixteenth century. Sequels proliferated to form a cycle of twelve books, written by various authors, whilst the work was translated into Italian, English, German and Dutch. Its influence spans the centuries and disciplines. Cervantes made it the direct target of *Don Quixote* (1605), in which Amadis is precisely the chivalric model that the hero wishes to emulate and which the author sets out to ridicule. It fuelled the style of ‘précieux’ literature and the great epic novels of the 17th century, inspired Lully to compose an eponymous opera premiered at Versailles in 1684 with a libretto by Quinault, and indirectly gave its name to California — a place name derived from a fictional island in the Spanish cycle. In the 19th century, the chivalric imagination it embodies fuelled Romanticism and the Troubadour style, confirming the enduring influence it has had on European culture.
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About the sale MEMENTO AMORI
Auction location
Auction time 07/11/2026 at 2:00 PM
Pictures credits:
The Sovereign
See original version (French)
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