24th Jun, 2026 10:00
Fine Interiors
535
Jean Alexandre Joseph Falguière (French, 1831-1900)
'Phryne',
patinated bronze, inscribed to the base 'Falguière' and 'GOUPIL & CIE Editeurs', numbered '212'
9cm base diameter, 39cm high
Provenance:James Hamilton, 5th Duke of Abercorn, Baronscourt, County Tyrone, Northern Ireland.
Footnote:The origins of this bronze lie in a collaboration conceived a full decade before Gérôme turned to sculpture. Working with his brother-in-law, the dealer Adolphe Goupil, Gérôme proposed translating his celebrated painting 'Phryne Before the Areopagus' into three dimensions, commissioning Falguière to model the figure using the original canvas and Nadar's photographic studies of the model, Marie-Christine Leroux.
The painting itself recounts the dramatic trial of Phryne, the renowned courtesan of ancient Greece, charged with desecrating the Eleusinian Mysteries and facing a capital sentence. At the decisive moment, her advocate Hyperides removed her garments, compelling the judges to confront a beauty so extraordinary that they acquitted her. When Gérôme exhibited the work at the 1861 Salon it proved an immediate succès de scandale: critics were unsettled by Phryne's instinctive gesture of covering her face while exposed, and even Émile Zola found the nude uncomfortably contemporary, likening it to a modern woman surprised while undressing.
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Fine Interiors | London Highlights
It is with great pleasure that we present a selection of highlights from our upcoming Fine Interiors auction at our Cecil Court gallery, in the heart of London's West End.
The exhibition includes lots from the leading collections in the sale, with property from Mr and Mrs Francis Anthony Brinsley Valentine (with pieces by descent from the Earls of Lanesborough at Swithland Hall, Leicester), James Hamilton, 5th Duke of Abercorn, Frederick Parker, James Thursby-Pelham Esq.
18 May - 12 June 2026
Sworders Fine Art Auctioneers | 15 Cecil Court | London | WC2N 4EZ
Opening Hours
| Monday | 11.00-18.00 |
| Tuesday | 11.00-18.00 |
| Wednesday | 11.00-18.00 |
| Thursday | 11.00-18.00 |
| Friday | 11.00-18.00 |
For enquiries please contact: london@sworder.co.uk | 020 3971 2500
£1,000 - £1,500
Buyer's premium: 30.00% (inclusive of VAT, where applicable)
Condition Report
This lot does not have a condition report, if you would like further information, please click the 'Request A Condition Report’ button below.
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Please note that we normally offer this service for lots with an estimate of £500 or higher and all telephone bid requests must be received by close of business the day before the auction.
Auction: Fine Interiors, 24th Jun, 2026
It is with great pleasure that we share the full catalogue for our June auction, comprising over 650 lots of fine furniture, works of art, sculpture, and carpets to delight and inspire.
Leading the sale is the collection of Mr and Mrs Francis Anthony Brinsley Valentine, with many pieces descending from the Earls of Lanesborough at Swithland Hall, Leicester.
We are also delighted to present property from a number of other notable collections and distinguished individuals, including James Hamilton, 5th Duke of Abercorn, Frederick Parker, James Thursby-Pelham Esq., Judith Appio, and – following the success of the first instalment in our March Fine Interiors sale – a further group of lots from The Richard Collins Collection.
Alongside these collections, we are pleased to offer the contents of two distinct, though equally stylish, London interiors: 14 Prior Street and 18 Thurloe Square.
Viewing
Stansted Viewing | Auction
Viewing will be held at our Stansted Auction Rooms, Cambridge Road, Stansted Mountfitchet CM24 8GE, as follows:
Friday 19 June, 10am - 4pm
Sunday 21 June, 10am - 1pm
Monday 22 June, 10am - 4pm
All lots are, however, extensively illustrated and carry detailed condition reports - see 'Condition report' at the foot of each lot description.
The auction will take place at our Stansted Auction Rooms, Cambridge Road, Stansted Mountfitchet CM24 8GE.
Full Terms & Conditions relating to our auctions can be found here
Sorry, we cannot calculate a pre-sale automated shipping cost due to the items weight/size.
Should you be successful in buying this item, a specific shipping estimate can be requested after the sale by using the link in your invoice email; this also includes requests for international delivery.
If you would like further information about shipping and collection please see here.
Buying a pre-loved, antique, or vintage item not only provides you with unique style and value for money but it also helps to reduce landfill, and the annual emissions of an antique or vintage piece can be as little as one sixteenth of those of its new equivalent!
Sworders is proud to be supporting the work of Antiques are Green - the movement that was founded in 2009 to promote “a greener future created from the past”. Read their fascinating carbon footprint study of a Georgian chest of drawers versus a modern equivalent here
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