CHARLES CORDIER (1827-1905)
Vénus africaine
1852RCIN 41510
Queen Victoria was one of the first in Britain to own versions of these much-repeated busts, following their appearance at the Great Exhibition in 1851. While Saïd Abdallah began as a portrait of a studio assistant and freed slave, Saïd Enkess, this bust seems always to have been intended as a challenge to Western ideals of beauty.
Purchased by Queen Victoria in September 1852
No. 88
Purchased by Queen Victoria in September 1852
No. 88