Bust of Alexis Millardet, Bust in Bordeaux, France
The Buste d'Alexis Millardet is a stone bust placed in the Jardin public in Bordeaux, France, near the botanical greenhouses. It shows an older man wearing a velvet cap, a beard, and layered clothing, set on a stone base with a carved female figure holding grapes.
A first bronze version was unveiled in July 1914, made by sculptor Gaston Veuvenot Leroux and funded by wine growers and agricultural societies from several countries. The bronze was melted down in 1942 during the war, and a replacement in stone was made by Alexandre Callède in 1954 using a clay model.
The bust stands in the Jardin public, a large park in central Bordeaux where people walk every day. A young woman carved on the base holds a bunch of grapes, representing the gratitude of the wine growers whose harvests his work helped protect.
The bust is easy to find on foot by following the main paths of the Jardin public toward the botanical greenhouses, and the park is open daily. No entry fee is required to visit the park or see the sculpture.
Before the final bronze was cast, sculptor Gaston Leroux made a plaster version that is now kept at the INRAE research center in Bordeaux. This plaster model was presented to the commissioners in early 1914, several months before the public unveiling.
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