large late c19th early c20th swiss or black forest relief carved walnut or linden wood panel depicting the lion of lucerne

Description

Late C19th / early C20th Swiss or �Black Forest� relief carved walnut or linden wood panel depicting �The Lion of Lucerne� .
Well-executed carved panel of Bertel Thorvaldsen�s limestone monument inscribed in Latin �Helvetiorum Fidei Ac Virtuti � ( The Loyalty and Virtue of the Swiss) commemorating the Royal Swiss Guards who died trying to protect Louis XVI in 1792 when the Tuileries, Paris, were stormed.
Part of the inscription to the base of the panel ( STUDIO C.PYFFER ARTE THORVALDSEN OPERA L .AHORN ) relates to the genesis of the work, conceived from the idea of a local patrician , Karl Pyffer von Altishofen , a model was produced by Thorwaldsen in 1819 , and reproduced and sculpted on a grand scale by a local man Lukas Ahorn . The carved inscriptions below the lion , show the dates of the events together with a list of names.
The modelling of the lion owes much to Antonio Canova�s work of the two lions sculpted for the tomb of Pope Clement XIII in Rome .
In excellent original condition with a pleasing dry surface and pale colour. The lion deeply and skilfully carved with naturalistic fur and mane , and the whole with extensive carved scripted lettering. The verso fitted with a wall-hanging wire .
W 24�
H 19�
D 4�
Switzerland c.1900
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Internal Ref: ML 2511