MARTES, 23 DE JUNIO DE 2026 
A Rediscovered Sculpture by Charlotte de Saint-Gervais Sells for €58,256 at Drouot
O n 23 June 2026, the auction house Millon offered a bronze bust by the sculptor Charlotte de Saint-Gervais at Hôtel Drouot, following its rediscovery during an appraisal at a château in the Vendée region.Preserved by the artist's descendants since its creation, the work had remained within the same family for nearly 150 years. Estimated at €3,000–€5,000, the sculpture attracted intense bidding before achieving a hammer price of €58,256, more than ten times its upper estimate. This result reflects both the rarity of the work and the renewed interest in an artist whose work has long been overlooked.Exhibited at the Salon of 1876 under the title Négresse, this portrait of a young African woman is the earliest known work by Charlotte de Saint-Gervais to have been shown at the Salon. Trained in the studio of the sculptor Hélène Bertaux, known as Madame Léon Bertaux and a leading advocate for women's access to artistic education, the young artist made a remarkable debut on the Parisian art scene with this sculpture. Born around 1860, she would have been only about fifteen years old at the time. She subsequently pursued a discreet yet consistent career, exhibiting at the major Paris Salons until the end of the nineteenth century.Strikingly modern in conception, the bust stands apart from the conventional representations of its time. Charlotte de Saint-Gervais portrays an elegant and individualised young woman whose mischievous gaze, subtle smile and sophisticated hairstyle lend the sitter a genuine psychological presence. Far removed from a simple ethnographic study, the work already belongs to the realm of portraiture and reveals a particularly innovative approach within the artistic context of the late nineteenth century.
