Christopher Fratin (1 January 1801 – 16 August 1864), also known as Christophe Fratin, was a noted French

sculptor Sculpture is the branch of the visual arts that operates in three dimensions. Sculpture is the three-dimensional art work which is physically presented in the dimensions of height, width and depth. It is one of the plastic arts. Durable sc ...

in the

animalier An animalier (, ) is an artist, mainly from the 19th century, who specializes in, or is known for, skill in the realistic portrayal of animals. "Animal painter" is the more general term for earlier artists. Although the work may be in any genre ...

style, and one of the earliest French sculptors to portray animals in bronze.

Early life

Fratin was born in

Metz Metz ( , , , then ) is a city in northeast France located at the confluence of the Moselle (river), Moselle and the Seille (Moselle), Seille rivers. Metz is the Prefectures in France, prefecture of the Moselle (department), Moselle Departments ...

Moselle The Moselle ( , ; ; ) is a river that rises in the Vosges mountains and flows through north-eastern France and Luxembourg to western Germany. It is a bank (geography), left bank tributary of the Rhine, which it joins at Koblenz. A sm ...

France France, officially the French Republic, is a country located primarily in Western Europe. Overseas France, Its overseas regions and territories include French Guiana in South America, Saint Pierre and Miquelon in the Atlantic Ocean#North Atlan ...

the son of a

taxidermist Taxidermy is the art of preserving an animal's body by mounting (over an armature) or stuffing, for the purpose of display or study. Animals are often, but not always, portrayed in a lifelike state. The word ''taxidermy'' describes the process ...

. He first studied drawing under Pioche in Metz and later worked in

Paris Paris () is the Capital city, capital and List of communes in France with over 20,000 inhabitants, largest city of France. With an estimated population of 2,048,472 residents in January 2025 in an area of more than , Paris is the List of ci ...

at the studio of

Théodore Géricault Jean-Louis André Théodore Géricault (; 26 September 1791 – 26 January 1824) was a French painter and lithographer, whose best-known painting is '' The Raft of the Medusa''. Despite his short life, he was one of the pioneers of the Romanti ...

Work

He exhibited at the

Paris Salon The Salon (), or rarely Paris Salon (French: ''Salon de Paris'' ), beginning in 1667 was the official art exhibition of the in Paris. Between 1748 and 1890 it was arguably the greatest annual or biennial art event in the Western world. At the ...

from 1831 to 1842 and 1850–1862, as well as at the

Great Exhibition The Great Exhibition of the Works of Industry of All Nations, also known as the Great Exhibition or the Crystal Palace Exhibition (in reference to the temporary structure in which it was held), was an international exhibition that took ...

in London in 1851. Fratin never signed his bronzes but instead used a stamp showing his last name in straight block letters. One of the stamps he used (''pictured'') showed the "n" reversed, not by design but due to an error on the part of the maker of the stamp. Bronzes bearing this stamp have the appearance of not seeming to be genuine when in reality they are. Fratin received monumental commissions in France and elsewhere, including the ''Deux Aigles Gardant Leur Proie'' (''Eagles and Prey'', created 1850) displayed since 1863 in New York City's

Central Park Central Park is an urban park between the Upper West Side and Upper East Side neighborhoods of Manhattan in New York City, and the first landscaped park in the United States. It is the List of parks in New York City, sixth-largest park in the ...

. Many of his small bronzes—including his miniature bronzes which were more affordable due to their smaller size—were sold commercially to the general public during his lifetime. Today, Fratin's sculpture is on permanent display in the

Louvre The Louvre ( ), or the Louvre Museum ( ), is a national art museum in Paris, France, and one of the most famous museums in the world. It is located on the Rive Droite, Right Bank of the Seine in the city's 1st arrondissement of Paris, 1st arron ...

, the city museums of

Lyon Lyon (Franco-Provençal: ''Liyon'') is a city in France. It is located at the confluence of the rivers Rhône and Saône, to the northwest of the French Alps, southeast of Paris, north of Marseille, southwest of Geneva, Switzerland, north ...

Strasbourg Strasbourg ( , ; ; ) is the Prefectures in France, prefecture and largest city of the Grand Est Regions of France, region of Geography of France, eastern France, in the historic region of Alsace. It is the prefecture of the Bas-Rhin Departmen ...

Nîmes Nîmes ( , ; ; Latin: ''Nemausus'') is the Prefectures in France, prefecture of the Gard Departments of France, department in the Occitania (administrative region), Occitanie Regions of France, region of Southern France. Located between the Med ...

and at the

Peabody Institute The Peabody Institute of the Johns Hopkins University is a Private university, private music and dance music school, conservatory and College-preparatory school, preparatory school in Baltimore, Maryland. Founded in 1857, it became affiliat ...

Baltimore Baltimore is the most populous city in the U.S. state of Maryland. With a population of 585,708 at the 2020 census and estimated at 568,271 in 2024, it is the 30th-most populous U.S. city. The Baltimore metropolitan area is the 20th-large ...

Maryland Maryland ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Mid-Atlantic (United States), Mid-Atlantic region of the United States. It borders the states of Virginia to its south, West Virginia to its west, Pennsylvania to its north, and Delaware to its east ...

. The Georg Eisler archive in

Vienna Vienna ( ; ; ) is the capital city, capital, List of largest cities in Austria, most populous city, and one of Federal states of Austria, nine federal states of Austria. It is Austria's primate city, with just over two million inhabitants. ...

also has on display works by Fratin. A number of Fratin's pieces portray horses, especially portraits of famous horses such as ''Fermer, cheval anglais pur-sang'', a wax of which he debuted at the Salon of 1831, the same exhibition in which

Barye The barye (symbol: Ba), or sometimes barad, barrie, bary, baryd, baryed, or barie, is the centimetre–gram–second (CGS) unit of pressure. It is equal to 1 dyne per square centimetre. : = = = = = See also *Pasca ...

's ''Tigre dévorant un gavial'' was featured. At

Montrouge Montrouge () is a Communes of France, commune in the southern Parisian suburbs, located from the centre of Paris. It is one of the most densely populated municipalities in Europe. After a long period of decline, the population has increased agai ...

Square in Paris appears a colossal bronze group standing 2 meters high entitled ''Cheval attaqué par un lion'', executed in 1852. Fratin received many commissions from the State including groups designed for the botanical garden and the

esplanade An esplanade or promenade is a long, open, level area, usually next to a river or large body of water, where people may walk. The historical definition of ''esplanade'' was a large, open, level area outside fortress or city walls to provide cle ...

of his hometown; amongst the groups were two dogs, a deer at bay, a purebred horse, and some eagles. He also produced a number of whimsical bear sculptures, one being ''Ours jouant de la cornemuse'' which shows a bear holding a musical instrument.

Death and legacy

Fratin died on 17 August 1864 at

Le Raincy Le Raincy () is a prestigious communes of France, commune in the eastern suburbs of Paris, France. It is located from the Kilometre Zero, center of Paris. Le Raincy is a subprefecture of the Seine-Saint-Denis departments of France, department and ...

(

Seine-Saint-Denis () is a department of France located in the Grand Paris metropolis in the region. In French, it is often referred to colloquially as ' or ' ("ninety-three" or "nine three"), after its official administrative number, 93. Its prefecture is Bobi ...

) and is buried in

Montmartre Cemetery The Cemetery of Montmartre () is a cemetery in the 18th arrondissement of Paris, France, that dates to the early 19th century. Officially known as the Cimetière du Nord, it is the third largest necropolis in Paris, after the Père Lachaise Cemet ...

. He is honored in Metz where a street is named after him.

Photo gallery

File:Horse_Fratin.jpg, Monumental ''Horse'' c. 1850, in

, France File:Fratin-Goat-Bronze.c1840.jpg, A miniature bronze of a goat by Fratin, c. 1840 File:Fratin-Rooster-Bronze-c1840.jpg, A miniature bronze of a rooster by Fratin, c. 1840 File:Fratin-Inverted.n-stamp.JPG, Reversed "N" stamp used by Fratin

References

Bibliography

* Michel Poletti, Alain Richarme, ''Fratin : objets décoratifs & sculptures romantiques'', Paris : Univers du bronze sculptures XIXe & XXe, 2000. . * Jane Horswell, ''Les Animaliers'', 1971. * James Mackay, ''The Animaliers'', 1973. * Christopher Payne, ''Animals in Bronze'', 1986. * Pierre Kjellberg, ''Bronzes of the 19th Century'', 1994. * George Savage, ''A Concise History of Bronzes'', 1968. * E. Benezit, ''Dictionnaire des Peintres et Sculpteurs'', 1966. * Stanaslas Lami, ''Dictionnaire de Sculpteurs de l'ecole Francaise'', 1914.

External links

Bronze Gallery: Christophe Fratin

Central Park Conservancy: Eagles and Prey
* {{DEFAULTSORT:Fratin, Christopher French animal artists 1801 births 1864 deaths Animal sculptors Burials at Montmartre Cemetery 19th-century French sculptors French male sculptors 19th-century French painters French male painters Metz School 19th-century French male artists