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Leopard Watching Serpent

1810–75
Not on view
Barye worked primarily as a sculptor of animal subjects but also produced highly finished watercolors based on studies he made during his regular visits to the Jardin des Plantes in Paris, often in the company of his friend Eugène Delacroix. There, he observed and sketched the live animals in the zoo as well as stuffed and skinned specimens in the natural history museum. He then imagined violent confrontations among species, such as this standoff between a leopard and a snake. The generic rocky landscape background that Barye invented for his　composition betrays the captive context for his observation of the animals.

Artwork Details

Object Information
  • Title: Leopard Watching Serpent
  • Artist: Antoine-Louis Barye (French, Paris 1795–1875 Paris)
  • Date: 1810–75
  • Medium: Watercolor on wove paper
  • Dimensions: Sheet: 6 9/16 x 9 13/16 in. (16.6 x 25cm)
  • Classification: Drawings
  • Credit Line: H. O. Havemeyer Collection, Bequest of Mrs. H. O. Havemeyer, 1929
  • Object Number: 29.100.588
  • Curatorial Department: Drawings and Prints

More Artwork

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Standing Stag (Cerf debout), Antoine-Louis Barye French, Bronze, French
Standing Stag (Cerf debout)
Antoine-Louis Barye
Susse Frères
modeled 1829, cast probably between ca. 1850–70
Four-light candelabrum (one of a pair), Antoine-Louis Barye French, Bronze, French
Four-light candelabrum (one of a pair)
Antoine-Louis Barye
modeled ca. 1845, cast probably 1864–75
Fender, Antoine-Louis Barye French, Bronze and gilt bronze, French
Fender
Antoine-Louis Barye
second half 19th century
Leopard walking, Antoine-Louis Barye French, Bronze, French
Leopard walking
Antoine-Louis Barye
modeled 1831
Genet dragging a bird, Antoine-Louis Barye French, Bronze, French
Genet dragging a bird
Antoine-Louis Barye
modeled 1831

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