Ape with Basket
by FRATIN, Christophe, Bronze, sand cast, 20 x 15 cm
One of Fratin’s specialties was to create humanized animals. He did many small sculptures of bears doing human activities and a few of apes and monkeys acting like people.
The present bronze shows an ape or monkey carrying a woven basket on his back, probably depicting a wood gatherer. The basket could be intended to be a matchsafe or just an amusing sculpture.