'Enfant endormi' (The Sleeping Child)

In 2016, the Pierre-François Tilmon Fund, which works to preserve and promote the heritage of Namur, was able to acquire this neoclassic medallion in an auction held at the Vanderkindere auction house. The work was created by the famous Namur sculptor Pierre-François Le Roy (1739-1812). Le Roy first trained in Paris and then in 1765 trained under Charles Bridan. His work was especially appreciated by Duke Charles-Alexandre de Lorraine, Governor-General of the Austrian Netherlands as well as by the state of Namur. L’Éros endormi (The Sleeping Eros), often also referred to as Le sommeil des innocents (The Sleeping innocents), is a recurring theme in Le Roy’s work and the artist created several statues on this theme. Enfant endormi is an excellent demonstration of the tenderness and the effects of perspective that Le Roy managed to infuse in his work, despite the material being barely a few millimetres thick.