The Lion of Belfort, Frédéric-Auguste Bartholdi

Artwork Overview

Frédéric-Auguste Bartholdi, The Lion of Belfort
Frédéric-Auguste Bartholdi, The Lion of Belfort
Frédéric-Auguste Bartholdi
The Lion of Belfort
mid 1800s–early 1900s
Frédéric-Auguste Bartholdi
1834–1904
The Lion of Belfort, mid 1800s–early 1900s
Where object was made: France
Material/technique: terracotta
Dimensions:
Object Height/Width/Depth (Height x Width x Depth): 24.8 x 34 x 11.9 cm
Object Height/Width/Depth (Height x Width x Depth): 9 3/4 x 13 3/8 x 4 11/16 in
Credit line: Museum purchase: Helen Foresman Spencer Art Acquisition Fund
Accession number: 1989.0039
Not on display
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Archive Label 1999: The Lion of Belfort is a colossal granite monument commemorating the defense of the eastern French city of Belfort during the Franco-Prussian War in 1870. Commissioned by the city in 1871, it was a work that complements in size and subject Bartholdi's more famous work, Liberty Enlightening the World, which stands in New York harbor. This terracotta is a cast reduction of the lion with final details applied by the artist. To indicate the massive dimensions of the finished monument, Bartholdi has provided a miniature metric scale on the right edge with a human standing nearby to indicate relative size. This sculpture was given by Bartholdi to Léon Kerst, a critic who wrote for the French newspaper Petit Journal.

Resources

Audio

Hear a SWMS student's perspective.
Audio Tour – Bulldog Art Tour
Hear a SWMS student's perspective.
Audio Tour – Bulldog Art Tour
How can you capture the art of working together? You may have thought this before, and so had Frederic-Auguste Bartholdi, the maker of The Lion of Belfort. Designed to capture the heroics of the French army during a 103 day siege of Belfort, the massive lion stands 22 meters long and 11 meters tall. Bartholdi has designed massive monuments before - most notably the Statue of Liberty, commemorated on the 100th anniversary of the Revolutionary War and the United State’s alliance with France. What do these two structures have in common? They are both related to war, but what else? The French soldiers were outnumbered by more than 2 to 1, and the United States was facing the greatest army in the world. It seemed as though all hope was lost for both of them. Then, they realized that they could work together to defeat this. No soldier can take on two enemies at a time, but working together, the French overcame their enemy and won the battle. The group was willing to work together for a common goal, which multiplied the team’s strength and helped them to victory. The lion that you are looking at, which is just a scale model of the actual granite structure in France, captures teamwork. If nobody worked together, there would be no lion, and there would constantly be struggle between us. The lion is the teamwork between us and the willingness to help each other to achieve a common goal. If we lose teamwork, we lose the lion, and we lose the ability to accomplish things. I think that this piece is a reminder to us that we all need to work together so that the lion will stay forever. This has been another Bulldog Audio Tour.