Italian Marble Sculptures Representing The Baths of Apollo, Set of 7

7 Stunning Italian Marble Sculptures Representing "The Baths of Apollo" H: 220cm early 20th Century France. Versailles. Palace. Gardens. Grove of the Baths of Apollo. Hubert Robert. Palace of Versailles. Grove of the Baths of Apollo. Hubert Robert. 1778-1781. François Girardon and Thomas Regnaudin, in 1666. The current Grove of the Baths of Apollo, which is part of the gardens of Versailles, was created between 1778 and 1781 by Hubert Robert under the reign of Louis XVI and features three groups of marble sculptures. These works were created between 1666-1672 for the Grotto of Thetis, built on the north side of the Palace of Versailles, before its final extension. The grotto was doomed to disappear when, in 1684, the north wing of the palace was built. The sculptures were taken to the Bois de la Renommée, and then moved to the Groves of the Marais. In 1705, this garden disappeared, and Jules Hardouin-Mansart created a new decoration to protect the three groups of sculptures: gilded lead canopies on pedestals, bordered by a pond. Under Louis XVI, the entire grove was completely modified and Hubert Robert created an English-style garden, the centre of which is occupied by a lake dominated by a small artificial mountain adorned with waterfalls, and in which three grottos were created to accommodate the three groups: Apollo served by the nymphs, in the centre, and The Horses of the Sun, on either side. It seems that the general idea of ​​the grotto's programme goes back to the memoirs of Charles Perrault, who took as a reference the second volume of Ovid's Metamorphoses, to evoke Apollo's rest at the end of his daytime career in the sea cave of the goddess Thetis. His brother, Claude Perrault, would be the one who devised the iconography of the sculptures (in the form of sketches) and, once royal approval had been given, Le Brun, painter and in charge of the decoration of the Palace of Versailles, was to make the execution drawings that were entrusted to the sculptors. The central work - Apollo served by the nymphs nymphs—represents Apollo being bathed by nymphs in the Grotto of Thetis, which was the place where the god rested after driving his horse-drawn chariot across the sky from east to west during the day, making the reverse journey at night. While resting, Apollo is attended to by the nymphs. The work was created by the sculptors François Girardon and Thomas Regnaudin in 1666. It is made up of seven sculptures: Girardon is the author of the figure of Apollo—inspired by the Apollo of Belvedere—, of Doris, the nymph pouring water into the god’s hands, and of Melicerte, kneeling with a wet cloth in her hands. Regnaudin’s figures are: the one covering the god, designated as the goddess Thetis according to the 1707 sculpture inventory, Chloe, the nymph holding a tray, and Delphire carrying a large vase. The nymph kneeling at Apollo's feet, Clymene, carrying a vase on which a Rhine Passage is carved, is not mentioned by which of the two sculptors she belongs. The Horses of the Sun groups were sculpted by Gilles Guérain (on the left, as we look) and the Marsy brothers (on the right, as we look) between 1668 and 1675 for the Grotto of Thetis. The sculptures represent horses that are joyful after being unhitched from the chariot of the Sun and feeling free. The sculptors were able to perfectly express the nervousness and the ardour of the horses that the tritons could barely contain. The Horses of the Sun followed the same path as the central group, finding refuge on either side of it in the grotto created by Hubert Robert in 1778. Apollo's solar chariot was pulled by four horses that represent the solar orbit. Their names, which may vary depending on the source, are: Erythreus (rising sun), Actaeon (the radiant dawn), Lampos (the resplendent and dazzling midday) and Philogeus (the setting sun). Louis XIV, the Sun King, was identified with Apollo through the iconography of this god; a divinization that became more pronounced as his reign progressed. He used it in his public, official and private appearances, and even participated in performances disguised as the god Apollo.