£200
A BAS-RELIEF PORTRAIT MEDALLION OF ADMIRAL SIR WILLIAM SYDNEY SMITH, CIRCA 1834
the hero of the defence of Acre, his head right with thick, curled hair, his name behind in facsimile signature, signed and dated “David 1834” below truncation -- 6¼in. (16cm.) diameter, mounted on board
Literature: J. G. Reinis, The Portrait Medallions of David d'Angers, New York, 1999, No. 441; Chesneau, Les oeuvres de David d'Angers, sculpteur d'histoire et mémorialiste, Angers, 1934, No. 842
Ex. Collection Ralph Holland (1917-2012), Art Historian.
William Sidney Smith (1764-1840) joined the navy aged 11, and for his bravery at the battle of Cape St Vincent in 1780 he was appointed Lieutenant, unprecedented to one so young. He saw action in the American War of Independence and served in the Swedish navy (he was knighted for his bravery). In the Napoleonic Wars he was captured at Le Havre, but later escaped from the Temple prison in Paris and got back to England. Helped by Turkish forces he orchestrated the heroic defence of Acre against Napoleon. He received his British knighthood for his services to Wellington following Waterloo. He died in Paris and his tomb in the Père Lachaise Cemetery reproduces the David medal in marble.
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