Lot 0006
Nikolai Liberich. A Russian bronze “Lying boar”
Estimate: 1200-1500€
Nikolai Liberich. Lying Boar paperweight.
Model circa 1866
Bronze, casting, chasing
Dimensions: 5.5 × 20.5 × 17.5 cm
St. Petersburg, 1870s–1880s
This finely detailed bronze sculpture depicts a wild boar lying on the ground, rendered with naturalistic accuracy and careful attention to the animal’s anatomy and textured fur.
Exhibitions: A comparable piece was exhibited at the State Russian Museum in Nikolai Liberich. Sculpture and Graphics from the Collections of A. G. Egorov and K. V. Zhuromsky (2011).
Publications: A comparable work was published in the book by A. Egorov and K. Zhuromsky Nikolai Liberich. Sculpture and Graphics (p. 220).
Nikolai Ivanovich Liberich (1828–1883)
Born into a civil servant’s family, Liberich first served in the Life Guards Dragoon and Hussar Regiments, retiring with the rank of colonel. He later studied sculpture at the Imperial Academy of Arts in St. Petersburg under P. K. Klodt, and in 1861 he was awarded the title of Academician.
Liberich became renowned for his numerous hunting, military, and genre scenes, as well as his highly naturalistic animal models. Many of his works were produced for leading bronze and silver manufacturers in St. Petersburg, including A. I. Sokolov, P. A. Ovchinnikov, and I. S. Sazikov. His sculptures were repeatedly shown at the exhibitions of the Imperial Academy of Arts, as well as at major international expositions, including the World’s Fairs in London (1872), Paris (1878), and Antwerp (1885).
Starting price: 800€
Estimate: 1200-1500€
Hammer Price: 1300€
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