?Final Price Realized includes Buyer’s Premium added to Hammer Price
Estimate: $ 15,000 - $ 20,000
ALPHONSE MUCHA (1860-1939) LORENZACCIO. 1896. 80 x 29 inches. F. Champenois, Paris. Condition A- / B+: vertical and horizontal folds; minor repaired tears. Two sheets. Matted and framed. Sarah Bernhardt loved playing male characters, and selected her repertoire (Hamlet, l'Aiglon etc.) to enable her to do so. Toward this purpose she had Lorenzaccio adapted for the stage from the novel written by Alfred de Musset. The story is an intricate drama set in Renaissance Italy revolving around a Medici prince (Lorenzaccio) who has to figure out a way to save Florence, which is under siege by Alexander. The plot gives Mucha the opportunity to evoke the Renaissance, which he does in masterly fashion, through the intricacies of the costume (and accessories) as well as the ornate background. Here the actress is depicted contemplating "how to kill Alexander in order to save the town and his own honor . . . The dragon above represents the evil forces about to devour the city . . . the ornate, jeweled sword in the bottom panel . . . the possible solution." (Rennert/Weill p. 107). DFP-II 626, Maitres 144.
