Tested by the test of time and of the city, the bronzes of the Coustou brothers have left Place Bellecour.
These rare remains of 18th century French monumental sculpture have joined the Musée des Beaux-Arts in Lyon where they will be restored and installed safe from damage.
"
This is a very important moment for our museum, which has been pleading for years for the removal of these works and their installation in the Palais des Beaux-Arts
", rejoiced Tuesday in front of the press the director of the museum Sylvie Ramond.
Read also: A Bronze Age sword exhumed in very good condition from a Danish archaeological site
These allegories of the Saône and the Rhône, classified as historical monuments, were the last in France to be presented in the open air and without protection.
Tagged, one finger amputated, eroded by rain and pollution, they were in "
highly critical
" condition.
They will be restored, at a cost of 90,000 euros, within the museum itself, under the gaze of the public.
They will then be placed in the shelter in front of the main staircase of the palace.
The works of the brothers Nicolas and Guillaume Coustou, two Lyonnais, since 1721 flanked the pedestal of the large equestrian statue of Louis XIV installed on the famous square of the capital of the Gauls.
JEAN-PHILIPPE KSIAZEK / AFP
Due to the brothers Nicolas and Guillaume Coustou, two Lyonnais, since 1721 they have flanked the pedestal of the large equestrian statue of Louis XIV installed on the famous square of the capital of the Gauls.
During the French Revolution, the then mayor, Louis Vitet, managed to save them, but the equestrian statue ended up in melting, like many other royal effigies.
During the French Revolution, the then mayor, Louis Vitet, managed to save them.
JEAN-PHILIPPE KSIAZEK / AFP
The current equestrian statue, produced by François-Frédéric Lemot, was inaugurated in 1825. Contrary to the express wishes of the sculptor, the works of the Coustou were again installed at its foot in 1957 by the mayor Édouard Herriot.
