French school, probably around 1700 Nymph with shell Terracotta (Old restorations) Nymph with a shell, terracotta, French school, probably ca. 1700 38 x 62 x 34 cm (14.96 x 24.41 x 13.39 in.) Provenance: Private collection, Lot-et-Garonne Comment: Our terracotta takes up a famous iconography, a marvellous model and a fascination of sculptors throughout the ages, already borrowed from the ancient Borghese before its entry into the Louvre by Antoine Coysevox and his famous marble which took its place in the gardens of the Château de Versailles from 1685. Our original, highly sensitive terracotta takes these two models as its starting point, picking out elements here and there according to the sculptor's whims. While the movement and details seem to have been taken directly from the marble in the Borghese collections, the expression is closer to the French master's model, while the partially veiled basin at the end of the figure's feet is a clear reworking. Our terracotta is characterised by a free style and a distinctly personal emotion, which distinguishes it from a simple imitation, and leaves us to wonder about the identity of the artist who created it.