With one sculpture modelled as a short-haired retriever with hare and the other as a long-haired retriever with a pheasant, these fantastic bronze sculptures depict a pair of hunting dogs and are both signed 'J. Moigniez.'
Jules Moigniez (French, 1835-1894), was one of the most celebrated and sought after makers of bronze animal sculptures and animalia in the nineteenth century, and rightly so, judging by this superb pair in particular. The dogs are brought to life with a fantastic vitality, symmetrical in design and standing alert and upright, Moigniez's skill with bronze has allowed him to grant the pieces a real sense of presence, with the various patterns, textures, and feel of the fur and feathers of the birds emphatically wrought and sternly delineated. The pieces are mounted on original rounded bronze bases, which are signed for the artist.