Le sanglier

A remarkable force in the history of female artists, animalier Rosa Bonheur famously received permission from the French Government to cut her hair short and wear men’s clothing in order to blend in while studying animal anatomy at the abattoirs of Paris and the École nationale vétérinaire d'Alfort. Eventually, Bonheur settled at the Château de By on the edge of the forest of Fontainebleau. There, she kept a small menagerie that included boars like the one in Le sanglier to serve as the subjects of her paintings.

We are grateful to Annie-Paule Quinsac for confirming the authenticity of this painting.