9 - Edmond DESCA. (1855–1918)

Edmond DESCA. (1855–1918) “Salut Noble Béarn,” 1911. White marble. Signed, dated, and inscribed “To my friend H. Estelle” on the terrace Dimensions: 122 x 92 cm (Small chip on a finger and at the tip of the sword) This is a half-height version of the monumental sculpture originally intended for Parc Beaumont in Pau. This practice was common among sculptors of the 19th and early 20th centuries. This work is dedicated to Mr. Henri Estelle, a former prefect in several regions of southwestern France and a friend of the sculptor. Provenance: Private collection, Hautes-Pyrénées. In 1901, the city of Pau decided to pay tribute to the Cadets of Gascony by commissioning sculptor Edmond Desca (gold medalist at the 1889 World’s Fair) to create a marble statue titled “Salut Noble Béarn .” Installed in Parc Beaumont, the spectacular sculpture, measuring 2.50 m in height, depicts a haughty musketeer, clad in cape and sword, tipping his hat in salute to his native land. The Gascon gentleman was already familiar with his legend thanks, among other things, to Alexandre Dumas’s *The Three Musketeers* and Edmond Rostand’s play *Cyrano de Bergerac*, which premiered in Paris in 1897. Edmond Desca’s work is associated with the movement of French Neo-Baroque sculptors who modernized a tradition dating back to the 17th and 18th centuries. Desca created numerous monumental works that have found a home in cities across southwestern France: the Monument to Danton, the Fountain of the Four Valleys in Tarbes, the War Memorial in Périgueux, and *La Revanche* in Vic-en-Bigorre. Experts: Frédérick and Pauline CHANOIT