For the French Alpine Club
1889
Medium
Bronze, struck, silvered
Dimensions
2 5/16 × 1 3/4 in. (59 × 44 mm)
Classification
Medals and Plaquettes
Culture
French
Department
European Sculpture and Decorative Arts
Museum
Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York, NY
Credit
Gift of Samuel P. Avery, 1893
Accession Number
93.10.12a, b
Tags
Art Historical Context
**For the French Alpine Club** (1889) by Louis-Oscary is a exquisite silvered bronze medal, measuring just 2 5/16 × 1 3/4 inches, exemplifying the refined artistry of late 19th-century Frenchallic sculpture. Roty, a master engraver and leading figure in the revival of medal-making, crafted this piece for the prestigious Club Alpin Français, founded in 1874 to mountaineering and Alpine exploration. Struck from dies—a technique allowing intricate high-relief details—the medal likely features male figures amid rugged mountain landscapes, capturing the era's fascination with human conquest of natu...
About the Artist
Louis-Oscar Roty · 1846–1911
Louis-Oscar Roty, commonly known as Oscar Roty (1846–1911), was born on June 11 in Paris's Belleville neighborhood, the son of a modest schoolmaster. He began his artistic training under Horace Lecoq de Boisbaudran at the Petite École (later the École des Arts Décoratifs), honing his drawing skills, before entering the École des Beaux-Arts in 1864. There, he studied sculpture and medal engraving u...