Neoclassical patinated bronze figure of Diana after Houdon

Unapolotegically sensual and alluring, Neoclassical sculptor Jean-Antoine Houdon's (1741-1828) famous Diane Chasseresse (Diana Huntress) caused a sensation when it was first exhibited at the Paris Salon in 1777. While the figure was admired for her graceful movements, her nudity was viewed by Houdon's contemporaries as scandalous.

The Roman goddess Diana, the goddess of hunting, was most often depicted in Renaissance art and sculpture wearing a tunic, especially when hunting.

In Ancient Roman sculpture, however, Diana was most often shown nude, as here where she is shown leaning forward on one foot, impassive and elegant, and avoiding the viewer's gaze. This was the kind of depiction which, in Roman art, was considered fitting for a goddess.

The original figure which Houdon exhibited was completed in plaster, but he would go on to make a version in marble (now at the Gulbenkian Foundation in Lisbon), as well as several versions in bronze. These bronze versions are today the best known, and are housed at important collections such as the Louvre in Paris and the Frick Collection in New York.

This bronze sculpture was completed in the later19th Century, but uses the same casting as Houdon's original. It is set on a circular base on an ormolu mounted red marble stepped socle. The base is signed 'HOUDON'.