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polity french second republicconcept:era modern

The Horse Fair

Oil on canvas (1852–1855) by Rosa Bonheur. A monumental depiction of the horse market on the Boulevard de l'Hôpital, Paris, showing Percherons and handlers in energetic movement. The most celebrated animal painting of the 19th century. Held at the Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York.

Scholarly Significance

Anchor Rosa Bonheur's place in the canon with The Horse Fair, the largest and most celebrated animal painting of the 19th century.

Notes

  • ·Bonheur studied at the horse market — obtaining police permits to wear men's clothing — for 18 months before beginning the painting.
  • ·The work is more than 5 metres wide; one of the largest animal paintings of the 19th century.
  • ·Exhibited at the Salon of 1853; sold to the dealer Ernest Gambart, who organised a successful British tour.
  • ·Subsequently sold to the American collector Cornelius Vanderbilt II; he donated it to the Metropolitan Museum of Art in 1887.
  • ·Bonheur can be seen in the painting as one of the riders (wearing a dark coat and hat).
  • ·The painting cemented her international reputation and led to the 1865 Légion d'honneur.