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Louis XIII on Horseback

Statue
ca. 1615 - ca. 1620 (made)
Artist/Maker
Le Sueur, Hubert (sculptor)
Place of origin
Paris (made)

This statue is by Hubert Le Sueur and was made about 1615 - 1620 in Paris.

Louis XIII of France was born in 1601 and reigned from 1610 to 1643. By reference to medallic images, this portrait appears to show him aged between about 15 and 20. The horse and rider are related in from and style to the equestrian statue of King Charles I by Le Sueur (1633), now in Trafalgar Square, and to a small bronze statuette of Louis XIII on horseback in the Museum (A.1-1994), inscribed LE SVEVER on the girth. This type of walking horse is derived from Giambologna's monument to Cosimo I (Piazza della Signoria, Florence) which was reflected in Pietro Tacca's equestrian monument to Henri IV of France, formerly on the Pont Neuf, Paris, but destroyed during the French Revolution.

Le Sueur was an established sculptor, recognised for his exceptional bronze-casting skills by the King, before being sent to London where he stayed until the Civil War forced his return to France. His skill and precision in portraying armour may reflect the influence of his father who was a master armourer in Paris.

Object details

Categories
Royalty
Bronze
Sculpture
Object type
Statue
TitleLouis XIII on Horseback (generic title)
Materials and techniques
Bronze
Bronze
Cast
Brief description
Statue, bronze, Louis XIII on Horseback, by Hubert Le Sueur, French (Paris), ca. 1615-1620
Physical description
The horse is represented with the right front and left rear hooves raised. In the saddle sits the figure of Louis XIII, represented as a young man, bare-headed and in full armour, with a baton in his right hand.
Dimensions
  • Height: 82cm (Note: Dimension from Evelyn, Peta. 'Hubert le Sueur's equestrian bronzes at the Victoria & Albert Museum. In: The Burlington Magazine, (Feb. 1995), Vol. CXXXVII, No. 1103, p. 85-92 and Evelyn, Peta, 'The Equestrian Bronzes of Hubert Le Sueur', in Giambologna tra Firenze e l'Europa, Atti del convegno internazionale, Florence, Instituto Universitario Olandese di Storia dell'Arte, 2000, pp.85-92. )
  • Height: 945mm (Note: max height, including base - remeasured 20/08/2024 Measured for Europe 1600-1800)
  • Width: 785mm (Note: max width, head to tail, 20/08/2024 Measured for Europe 1600-1800)
  • Depth: 330mm (Note: max depth, 20/08/2024)
  • Width: 67.9cm (wooden base)
  • Depth: 25cm (wooden base)
Dimensions by EEH (19/01/1999) on Object card, including base are:- H. 95 cm W. 78 cm D. 30 cm
Credit line
Given by Dr. W. L. Hildburgh, F. S. A.
Object history
Aquired by Dr. W. L. Hildburgh at the sale Sotheby's London, 16 March 1951, lot 95 (with A.46-151, both as Pietro Tacca) ; Given by Dr. W. L. Hildburgh, F. S. A., 1951
Subjects depicted
Horse
Louis (XIII, King of France)
Summary
This statue is by Hubert Le Sueur and was made about 1615 - 1620 in Paris.

Louis XIII of France was born in 1601 and reigned from 1610 to 1643. By reference to medallic images, this portrait appears to show him aged between about 15 and 20. The horse and rider are related in from and style to the equestrian statue of King Charles I by Le Sueur (1633), now in Trafalgar Square, and to a small bronze statuette of Louis XIII on horseback in the Museum (A.1-1994), inscribed LE SVEVER on the girth. This type of walking horse is derived from Giambologna's monument to Cosimo I (Piazza della Signoria, Florence) which was reflected in Pietro Tacca's equestrian monument to Henri IV of France, formerly on the Pont Neuf, Paris, but destroyed during the French Revolution.

Le Sueur was an established sculptor, recognised for his exceptional bronze-casting skills by the King, before being sent to London where he stayed until the Civil War forced his return to France. His skill and precision in portraying armour may reflect the influence of his father who was a master armourer in Paris.
Bibliographic references
  • Evelyn, Peta, 'The Equestrian Bronzes of Hubert Le Sueur', in Giambologna tra Firenze e l'Europa, Atti del convegno internazionale, Florence, Instituto Universitario Olandese di Storia dell'Arte, 2000, pp.85-92
  • Evelyn, Peta. 'Hubert le Sueur's equestrian bronzes at the Victoria & Albert Museum. In: The Burlington Magazine, (Feb. 1995), Vol. CXXXVII, No. 1103, p. 85-92
  • Avery, Charles. 'Hubert le Sueur's Portraits of Charles I in Bronze, at Stourhead, Ickworth and Elsewhere. (National Trust Studies, 1979, pp. 128-47), reprinted in: Studies in European Sculpture, I, London, 1981, p. 201, fig. 18 and p. 202
  • Fonkenell, Guillaume (ed), À cheval: Le portrait équestre dans la France de la Renaissance, exh cat., (Musée national de la Renaissance - château d'Écouen, France). 2024, p. 243, cat.141
Collection
Sculpture Collection
Accession number
A.47-1951

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Record createdJune 24, 2009
Record URL
https://collections.vam.ac.uk/item/O312114/louis-xiii-on-horseback-statue-le-sueur-hubert/
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