Woman Bitten by a Snake (Femme piquée par un serpent) (1847) is the painting Auguste Clésinger is best remembered for; it belongs to the Musée d'Orsay, Paris. Woman Bitten by a Snake (Femme piquée par un serpent) (1847) and Woman Bitten by a Snake (1847) complete the trio of best-loved canvases. Our catalogue counts 10 works by Auguste Clésinger. Here are the 10 most famous, with the year, the museum and the story of each canvas.
Ranked by our popularity score, which combines the searches, visits and orders for each work. Updated November 2026. Each painting on this page can be ordered as an oil reproduction painted by hand on linen canvas, or as a fine art print, made to the size you choose.
In the grand, gilded halls of the 1847 Paris Salon, few works ignited as much fervent debate and whispered scandal as Auguste Clésinger’s Woman Bitten by a Snake (*Femme piquée par un serpent*). This breathtaking marble masterpiece does not merely sit in stillness; it writhes with a visceral, almost cinematic energy that captures the viewer in a moment of sudden, sharp agony and profound ecstasy. The sculpture depicts a nude…
In the grand, gilded halls of the 1847 Paris Salon, few works ignited as much fervent debate and whispered scandal as Auguste Clésinger’s Woman Bitten by a Snake. This breathtaking marble masterpiece does not merely sit in stillness; it writhes with a visceral, almost cinematic energy that captures the viewer in a moment of sudden, sharp agony and profound ecstasy. The sculpture depicts a nude woman, her body contorted in…
Auguste Clésinger’s 1847 marble sculpture, *Woman Bitten by a Snake*, is far more than a depiction of a dramatic, even unsettling, scene. It’s a potent distillation of Neoclassical ideals colliding with the burgeoning currents of Realism and Romanticism, a work that ignited controversy upon its debut at the Paris Salon and continues to hold an undeniable allure. The sculpture captures a moment of exquisite torment – a reclining nude female…
To stand before the likeness of Madame Sabatier is to encounter a moment suspended in time—a breath held between classical grace and quiet introspection. This marble bust, executed by Auguste Clésinger, transcends mere portraiture; it is an embodiment of refined elegance. The subject’s countenance, captured with such meticulous attention, invites the viewer into a world of serene contemplation. One cannot help but feel the weight of history settling upon those…
Auguste Clésinger’s Angel of Grief: A Baroque Echo in Marble The sculpture “Angel of Grief,” created by Auguste Clésinger in 1850, stands as a poignant testament to the artist's mastery of Baroque aesthetics translated into Neo-classical form. Commissioned for the tomb of Euterpe, the muse of music, Frédéric Chopin’s beloved wife, this monumental marble piece embodies profound sorrow and spiritual contemplation—themes deeply rooted in the artistic sensibilities of its time.…
Mounted Herdsmen and Bulls in the Roman Countryside is an oil on panel painting created by the French artist Auguste Clésinger. The work dates to about 1860. This piece is part of the European Painting collection and is currently held at the Los Angeles County Museum of Art. The format of the work is panoramic, presenting a wide view of the landscape and its subjects.
The marble captures a moment of profound intimacy and mythological tension. A nude woman lies on her side, her body language suggesting a quiet acceptance of the creature beside her. The swan, rendered with meticulous attention to the texture of feathers, extends its neck over her shoulder to press against her skin. This sculptural group freezes the precise instant of Zeus's transformation, where the divine meets the mortal in a…
The figure sits in a moment of quiet contemplation, a bronze form that seems to hold the weight of ancient legends within its dark patina. This is Pan, the shepherd god of Greek mythology, caught in a stillness that belies his wild nature. He is a creature of dualities, possessing the muscular torso of a man while his lower half transitions into the sturdy, powerful form of a goat. His…
The four subjects that return most often on these canvases, each with its best-loved example.
The 7 museums that hold the most of the paintings on this page.
| Museum | City | Works by Auguste Clésinger | Paintings from this list |
|---|---|---|---|
 Musée d'Orsay |
Paris | 4 | Woman Bitten by a Snake (Femme piquée par un serpent), Woman Bitten by a Snake (Femme piquée par un serpent), Woman Bitten by a Snake |
 Saint-Sulpice |
Paris | 1 | Angel of Grief |
 Los Angeles County Museum of Art |
Los Angeles | 1 | Mounted Herdsmen and Bulls in the Roman Countryside |
 Musée de Picardie |
Амиенс | 1 | Leda and the Swan |
 Germanisches Nationalmuseum |
Nuremberg | 1 | Sitzender Pan |
 Église de la Madeleine |
Bésonçon | 1 | Entombment |
 Museum Celda de Frédéric Chopin y George Sand |
Valldemossa | 1 | Chopin |
In the grand, gilded halls of the 1847 Paris Salon, few works ignited as much fervent debate and whispered scandal as Auguste Clésinger’s Woman Bitten by a Snake…
Auguste Clésinger’s Angel of Grief: A Baroque Echo in Marble The sculpture “Angel of Grief,” created by Auguste Clésinger in 1850, stands as a poignant testament to the…
Mounted Herdsmen and Bulls in the Roman Countryside is an oil on panel painting created by the French artist Auguste Clésinger. The work dates to about 1860. This…
The figure sits in a moment of quiet contemplation, a bronze form that seems to hold the weight of ancient legends within its dark patina. This is Pan,…
Woman Bitten by a Snake (Femme piquée par un serpent) (1847), Musée d'Orsay, Paris. Woman Bitten by a Snake (Femme piquée par un serpent) (1847) and Woman Bitten by a Snake (1847) follow.
Auguste Clésinger, born in 1814, was 33 years old: Woman Bitten by a Snake (Femme piquée par un serpent) dates from 1847.
Woman Bitten by a Snake (Femme piquée par un serpent), Woman Bitten by a Snake (Femme piquée par un serpent), Woman Bitten by a Snake, Madame Sabatier, Angel of Grief, Mounted Herdsmen and Bulls in the Roman Countryside, Leda and the Swan, Sitzender Pan, Entombment and Chopin. Each canvas in the ranking above comes with its year and its museum.
10 works by Auguste Clésinger are in our catalogue, dated 1847 to 1878.
Mostly in Musée d'Orsay (Paris), Saint-Sulpice (Paris) and Los Angeles County Museum of Art (Los Angeles); the list above names each museum and its canvases.
In 1840s, which gave 4 of the 10 works on this page, Woman Bitten by a Snake (Femme piquée par un serpent) among them.
The earliest canvas here is Woman Bitten by a Snake (Femme piquée par un serpent) (1847); the latest is Sitzender Pan (1878).
Sculpture (4) and Classical art (2), across the 10 works on this page.
Marble, used in 4 of the 10 works on this page.
The Musée d'Orsay, Paris holds 4 of the works on this page, among them Woman Bitten by a Snake (Femme piquée par un serpent), Woman Bitten by a Snake (Femme piquée par un serpent) and Woman Bitten by a Snake.
Yes. Every painting on this page can be ordered from its own page as an oil reproduction painted by hand, or as a fine art print, in the size you choose.
