Globe, French, Specialty, 2.5-inch Terrestrial World Globe, Cherub Base, Delagrave, Paris, late 19th Century

Description

The cherub’s pose strongly resembles that of an unfired clay sculpture by Italian Renaissance artist Andrea Verrocchio known as Putto Poised on a Globe (c. 1480), which is in the collection of the National Gallery of Art in Washington, D..C., though the Verrocchio work features a cherub without wings. An infant balancing on one foot was a favorite motif of Verrocchio, so the pose of this stand might have been inspired by that sculpture or another work of his. Indeed, variations of a cherub in this pose are also found in other art works from the ancient classical period through the Renaissance, Baroque, and Rococo eras, so the stand on the offered globe might have been based on other sources.

Pierre Émile Levasseur (1828–1911), also referred to as Émile Levasseur, E. Levasseur, E. Levassor, and with the title the 3rd Baron Levasseur,  was a French polymath academic historian, economist, and geographer. He served as professor of geography, history and statistics and administrator in the Collège de France, at the Conservatoire National des Arts et Métiers and at the École Libre des Sciences Politiques. In the field of geography, he is known for the development of cartogram thematic maps. He took part in the International Statistical Congresses, which prepared the way for the
establishment in 1885 of the International Statistical Institute, and was appointed a Vice-President. Among the numerous honors he received during his long career, he was an Honorary Fellow of the Royal Statistical Society and contributed many articles to its journal. He collaborated with Charles Delagrave in the production of an updated atlas in 1875, and in the production of terrestrial globes, including the offered example “La Terre,” and on a “Globe Levasseur” in the collection of the Bibliothèque Nationale de France.

Charles Delagrave, born 1842, was a French publisher of atlases, scientific models and instruments, and globes. After the Franco-Prussian War ended in 1871, he played an important role in the Geographic Institute of Paris. In 1875 he published an updated edition of the 1822 Atlas Universel de Geographie Physique, Politique, Ancienne et Moderne by Adrien Brue, edited by E. Levasseur, which indicates that Delagrave and Levasseur were collaborating at that time. Delagrave and Levasseur also collaborated on a small terrestrial globe known as “La Terre” such as the offered globe and one other known extant example on an ebonized wood stand.  They also collaborated on a “Globe Levasseur” in the collection of the Bibliothèque Nationale de France.

Cartouche: LA TERRE/ a l’Echelle de 1/200,000,000/par E. LEVASSEUR/ CH. DELAGRAVE/ 58 Rue des Ecoles/ Pa[ris]

Condition: Globe generally very good, professional restored to remove an indentation, now with remaining overall light toning, wear, handling, minor restored abrasions and losses. Stand very good; bronzed and gilt finish refreshed.

References:

“Atlas Universel de Geographie Physique, Politique, Ancienne et Moderne.” David Rumsey Map Collection. https://www.davidrumsey.com/luna/servlet/detail/RUMSEY~8~1~202171~3001065 (28 February 2024).

“Émile Levasseur (1828-1911). Toutes ses oeuvres.” BnF. https://data.bnf.fr/fr/see_all_activities/12276641/page1 (8 March 2024).

“[Globe terrestre] par Levasseur.” BnF Gallica. https://gallica.bnf.fr/ark:/12148/btv1b10060594x/f1.item# (8 March 2024).

“M. Emile Levasseur.” Journal of the Royal Statistical Society. Vol. 74, No. 8 (July 1911). pp. 832-834. Published by Oxford University Press for the Royal Statistical Society. Stable URL: https://www.jstor.org/stable/2340203 (8 March 2024).

“Pierre Émile Levasseur.” Wikipedia. 17 November 2021. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pierre_%C3%89mile_Levasseur (8 March 2024).
“Putto Poised on a globe, c. 1480.” National Gallery of Art. 2024. https://www.nga.gov/collection/art-object-page.135.html (28 February 2024).

“Verrocchio: Sculptor and Painter of Renaissance Florence.” National Gallery of Art. 2019. https://www.nga.gov/press/exh/4712/highlights.html (28 February 2024).