Dreweatts 1759
Lot 63
LAWRENCE GAHAGAN (1756-1820)- A BRONZE FULL LENGTH PORTRAIT OF GEORGE III CIRCA 1810 Depicted standing, stick to his right hand, naturalistic oval base, cast inscription to reverse of base L GAHAGAN FECIT & PUBd AS THE ACT DIRECTS JANy 1st 181* 27.5cm high, base 11.5cm wide Lawrence Gahagan (fl.1756-1820) specialised in small bronze portrait busts of contemporary notables. Amongst those exhibited at the Academy were Nelson, Pitt, Wellington and George IV. Another example in bronze had a legible inscription L GAHAGAN fecit & Publish'd as the Act Directs Decbr 1st 1818 (Anonymous sale, Christie's London, 21 July 1988, lot 23). It seems likely that many of these figures would have been retailed through William Bullock's museums in Liverpool and London. Gahagan is mentioned as the sculptor of a bust of 'Master Betty in Achmet' in an advertisement placed by William Bullock in the Liverpool Chronicle in 1805 (Lucy Wood, 'George Bullock in Birmingham and Liverpool', George Bullock Exhibition Catalogue, 1988, pp. 40 - 46. He was also the sculptor of the two massive limestone Egyptian figures which originally flanked the entrance to the Egyptian Room at Bullock's Museum in Piccadilly.Another related model in bronze, formerly with the New York dealer Cora Ginsburg, was sold Christie's New York, 18 October 2005, lot 347, another in painted plaster was sold from the collection of the late Simon Sainsbury, Christie's, London, 18 June 2008, lot 146. Condition Report: Country of origin: EnglandCondition Report Disclaimer