Maurice Roty, aet. 4 years, 4 months

Art Historical Context

This charming silvered bronze medallion created in 1886 by French Louis-Oscar Roty tenderly captures the profile of Maurice Roty at just 4 years and 4 months old. Titled *Maurice Roty,. 4 years, 4 months*, the small-scale plaquette (2 5/8 × 1 7/8 in.) reflects the intimate tradition of family portrait medals popular among 19th-century European artists and collectors. Roty, a leading figure in the revival of medal art, likely crafted this as a personal keepsake, blending paternal affection with artistic precision. Cast in bronze and finished with silvering, the piece showcases Roty's mastery of miniature sculpture. The lustrous silver accentuates the delicate modeling of the child's features, evoking the refined profile portraits of Renaissance medals while embracing late 19th-century French elegance. Medals and plaquettes like this were prized for their dual role as jewelry, desk ornaments, or collectibles, bridging decorative arts and fine sculpture. Acquired by the Metropolitan Museum of Art in 1893 as a gift from Samuel P. Avery, this work highlights the cultural vogue for such personalized artifacts in fin-de-siècle France, offering visitors a poignant window into everyday life rendered with extraordinary skill.

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...