(Saint-Marcellin 1823–1881 Paris)
Esther before Ahasuerus, signed, dated Hugues Merle.1875, oil on canvas, 145 x 95.5 cm, framed

Provenance:
William Schaus Art Gallery, New York, 1877;
Collection of Percy Avery Rockefeller (1878–1934) and Isabel Goodrich Rockefeller, née Stillman (1876–1935);
Their sale, Parke-Bernet Galleries, New York, 24 March 1938, lot 25;
Collection of Hubert Faure (1919–2021), Paris.

Catalogued in:
The New York Times, New Paintings at Schaus, 2 April 1877, p. 4.

Compare:
Huges Merle, Queen Esther 1875, oil on canvas, 78 x 68 cm, private collection.

We are grateful to Catherine Polnecq for her assistance with cataloguing the present lot.

The painting depicts Esther before King Ahasuerus, who lived in the 5th century BC. The orphaned young Jewish woman was renowned for her great beauty. She was the wife of the Persian king Ahasuerus, with whom she tried to intercede for the fate of her people, who were condemned to death by a close royal adviser. Esther risked death by appearing before the king without an invitation, and fainted at his feet in fear. The king, moved by this spectacle, granted his pardon and clemency to all the Jews of Persia.
Hugues Merle paints Esther frozen for a few moments before she loses her balance. The young woman’s distress is palpable. Her gaze is distant. She tries for a moment to loosen the transparent veil covering her head and neck, as she tries to stop herself from falling by grabbing a colourful hanging. Her clothes are adorned with gems and jewels, while the dark silhouette of the king seated on his throne stands out in the background. He is holding a sceptre which will symbolise forgiveness when it touches Esther. He wears a precious royal crown, high and pointed at its tip.

This painting is part of a cycle of works devoted to Old Testament heroines that Hugues Merle painted for the American market from the 1870s onwards. The New York dealer P. Avery and his associate George Lucas, the latter living in Paris, regularly commissioned preparatory studies from the artist with a view to optioning a larger format. There is a smaller preparatory work for Queen Esther, 1875, in a private collection. This painting was commissioned from the artist to suit the tastes of the great American collectors, who were becoming increasingly numerous at the time.