A. Lesueur

Available for sale from Big Sky Fine Art in the English county of Dorset, this original French charcoal drawing (heightened in white) of the Orientalist School is signed A. Lesueur and is dated 1892.<br> The drawing is presented and supplied in a contemporary and sympathetic frame (which is shown in these photographs) mounted using conservation materials and behind glass. <br> This antique drawing (heightened in white) is in very good condition, commensurate with its age. The paper surface has been cleaned on our instruction, supervision and approval. It wants for nothing and is supplied ready to hang and display.<br> The drawing has been created on French fine art paper by Canson. An embossed blind stamp is located in the top left-hand corner and features a “Caduceus” with a winged helmet above it. The letters are “GF” and the wording at the side says “Bristol Teinte”.<br> The drawing is signed and dated 1892 lower right.<br> <br> This is an amazing original artwork created in 1892 in France. The medium of the work is charcoal on paper with white heightening. The piece is signed by the artist and dated in the lower right section.<br> <br> We have had this piece professionally cleaned and framed and now offer it for sale in excellent condition, commensurate with its age. It is clean and complete and ready to hang. It is a stylish and powerful image and a perfect conversation piece which would add elegance and drama to any home or office or setting of your choice.<br> <br> The work depicts a male figure in traditional Arab dress with his magnificent white horse. The horse has a fine bridle and saddle, consistent with the Arabic Orientalism genre. The horse has reared up, as if in fright, whilst the male, standing bravely in front, reaches to draw his sword from its scabbard in a defensive gesture. We note there is also a dagger in a sheath on the saddle of the horse. This is a both a bold and a touching scene.<br> <br> The French orientalist Antoine Galland translated the ancient collection of Middle Eastern folk tales known as One Thousand and One Nights from the fourteenth or fifteenth century Syrian manuscript into French in the early 1700s. His version was called Les Mille et Une Nuits and he added to the original collection the stories of Aladdin’s Wonderful Lamp and Ali Baba and the Forty Thieves, as well as retelling The Seven Voyages of Sinbad the Sailor. His version was published in twelve volumes and exerted a significant influence on subsequent European literature and attitudes to the Islamic world. Indeed, it has been said that his version entered the works into world literature, as most later literary references to these tales are taken from his translation. In the later 1880s and 1890s these tales became very popular in European literary circles and illustrations of the characters in the stories were fashionable. This extraordinary work of art appears to be one such illustration, taking its inspiration from the adventures of the ancient middle eastern world. It is perhaps of note that this work of art was created only four years after the first English translation of One Thousand and One Nights by Sir Richard Francis Burton. It is possible that this work was produced as an illustration for a printed version of the tales, or simply that it represented this aspect of literary culture at the end of the nineteenth century. Either way, it is a unique and authentic piece of history in its own right.<br> <br> © Big Sky Fine Art