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Lot Essay
Herbert Haseltine conceived Percheron as part of a series of British champion animals, most of which the artist modeled between 1922 and 1924. During this time, the artist travelled around Great Britain modeling the animals from life and later refined the sculptures in his Paris studio. The present work was modeled after the horse Rhum who received champion honors at the Royal Agricultural Society of England between 1921-23 and the Norwich Stallion show in 1922 and 1933. Haseltine's study of ancient art--Egyptian, Greek, Assyrian and Chinese--greatly influenced the figures in this series. Not only were the forms simplified and slightly stylized, but the artist experimented with different types of patinas, as in the present combination of silver and yellow gilding.
Joel Rosenkranz and Janice Conner write, "The original British Champion Animals series was carved and cast one-third life size; then one-quarter life-size reductions were cast. The edition of the larger marble and stone works was limited to three replicas, the bronze to six casts. The smaller, one-quarter version was limited to twelve casts. There was also done in a one-eighth life-size version, the figure averaging 5 to 6 inches high; and at least six sets of this twenty-animal series were cast. Most of Haseltine's finished works are signed and dated on either the self-base or the attached marble base. Without exception the date indicates when the piece was cast or carved, not the year it was originally modeled." (Rediscoveries in American Sculpture: Studio Works, 1893-1939, Austin, Texas, 1989, p. 48)
Joel Rosenkranz and Janice Conner write, "The original British Champion Animals series was carved and cast one-third life size; then one-quarter life-size reductions were cast. The edition of the larger marble and stone works was limited to three replicas, the bronze to six casts. The smaller, one-quarter version was limited to twelve casts. There was also done in a one-eighth life-size version, the figure averaging 5 to 6 inches high; and at least six sets of this twenty-animal series were cast. Most of Haseltine's finished works are signed and dated on either the self-base or the attached marble base. Without exception the date indicates when the piece was cast or carved, not the year it was originally modeled." (Rediscoveries in American Sculpture: Studio Works, 1893-1939, Austin, Texas, 1989, p. 48)