Diana of Versailles (Diane Chasseresse)
probably John Cheere (London 1709 – London 1787)
Category
Art / Sculpture
Date
1744
Materials
Lead
Measurements
2135 mm (high)
Order this imageCollection
Stourhead, Wiltshire
NT 562880.1
Summary
Painted off-white lead sculpture on red marble pedestal, Diana of Versailles (Diane Chasseresse), probably by John Cheere (1709 – London 1787). Lead statue of Diana of Versailles, short robe/dress above knee, sandals to feet, striding forwards, reaching with her right hand for an arrow from the quiver on her back, lacking her accompanying stag though. The original marble antique statue is now in the Louvre, Paris (moved in 1792/98) but was first recorded for certain at Fontainebleau in 1586, having been taken from the chateau at Meudon, a good century before many of the ancient statues were exported. A bronze copy was made for Charles I in 1633/34 by Hubert Le Sueur (RCIN 71444). Original position of the Stourhead statue is unknown but by 1760s it was in the Pantheon. Documentation in Wilberry Account Book (Hoare's Bank) shows statue of Apollo on same 1744 account as Diana, probably another plaster 'Belvedere Apollo' on South Lawn and then in Temple of Apollo in 1801 (Woodbridge 1982, p.55). ‘’Crescent moon’’ headdress
Provenance
Acquired by Henry II Hoare (1705-1785) and thence by descent; given to the National Trust along with the house, its grounds, and the rest of the contents by Sir Henry Hugh Arthur Hoare, 6th Bt (1865 – 1947) in 1946
Makers and roles
probably John Cheere (London 1709 – London 1787), sculptor
References
Haskell and Penny 1981: Francis Haskell and Nicholas Penny, Taste and the Antique, The Lure of Classical Sculpture 1500 - 1900, New Haven and London, 1981, 30 Woodbridge and Parnell, 1982: Kenneth Woodbridge and John Parnell. “Stourhead in 1768. Extracts from an unpublished journal by Sir John Parnell.” Journal of Garden History 2 Jan/Mar (1982): pp.59-70.