Vénus désarmant l'Amour (Venus Disarming Cupid), 19th Century Terracotta group

A fine and sensual terracotta sculptural group by the celebrated French sculptor Albert-Ernest Carrier-Belleuse, depicting Venus, semi-nude, her hair crowned with laurel and twisted in a long braid, tenderly restraining a winged Cupid who gazes up at her with playful insistence. The composition, full of movement and grace, rests on a naturalistic oval base with reeds and drapery. The signature A. Carrier Belleuse is incised into the base.

Carrier-Belleuse, often called "the Clodion of the Second Empire," was one of the most celebrated French sculptors of his era, renowned for his mythological terracotta groups of exceptional delicacy and sensuality. His workshop trained, among others, the young Auguste Rodin. This subject, Vénus désarmant l'Amour, is one of his most admired compositions, known in both terracotta and marble versions.

The present example is in exceptional, unrestored condition. A comparable example of this model, also in terracotta and of identical dimensions (73 cm), was offered at Sotheby's London, European Sculpture & Works of Art, 26 June 2024, Lot 278 (estimate £8,000–12,000).

Literature: J. Hargrove and G. Grandjean (eds.), Carrier-Belleuse: le maître de Rodin, Compiègne, 2014, p. 126, no. 86.