François Jules Edmond Got (1822–1901), French Actor
Medium
Bronze, cast
Dimensions
Diameter: 4 in. (10.2 cm)
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
93.10.42a, b
Rights
Public Domain
Tags
Art Historical Context
This bronze medal, created by Jules-Clément Chaplain in 1887, honors the celebrated French actor François Jules Edmond Got, who performed at the Comédie-Française for much of his career. Measuring just four inches across, the cast portrait captures Got in profile, accompanied by theatrical masks that reference his stage roles. As part of the Metropolitan Museum’s collection of medals and plaquettes, the work exemplifies the 19th-century tradition of commemorating notable cultural figures in a durable, portable format. Chaplain’s sensitive modeling highlights the actor’s dignified features whi...
About the Artist
Jules-Clément Chaplain · 1839–1909
Jules-Clément Chaplain (1839–1909) was a French engraver and medallist who became the most celebrated practitioner of the art medal in late nineteenth-century France. Born in Mortagne-au-Perche in Normandy, he studied at the École des Beaux-Arts in Paris under Jouffroy and Oudiné and won the Prix de Rome for engraving in 1863, which enabled him to study in Italy for several years. Chaplain's work...