Lot 37: Chronos

Maurice Lambert (1901-1964) Chronos bronze, dark-brown patina; on a stone base 19 in. (48.2 cm.) high

Chronus, otherwise known as Khronos, compares to the exhibited bronze in the National Gallery of Australia, of like dimensions. This was executed circa 1964, and we can presume that the present work is roughly contemporary. The National Gallery of Australia holds correspondence from the artist's widow which gives the title as Kronos. The differentiation in spelling is provoking; 'Kronos' (or 'Cronos') is the correct name for the Greek Titan who is also associated with the Roman deity Saturn - and analogously with human time. Kronos was essentially a destructive figure, who ate his own children in an attempt to evade the prophecy that he would suffer at their hands. The iconography for Kronus includes a scythe (he castrated his own father Uranus) and he is often represented as being of great age.

However, as the National Gallery of Australia has noted, Lambert's sculpture is completely different: it portrays a noble young god astride a winged horse, holding a globe. Such charactisation suggests the more obscure 'Chronos', who represents time in pre-Socratic philosophy. The small sphere beneath the horse's hoof may symbolise the wheel of the zodiac, which Chronos is often shown revolving in Greco-Roman mosaics.

The National Gallery of Australia also offers an alternative interpretation, identifying the sculpture as Pegasus and Bellerophon. Certainly, the winged horse does suggest Pegasus, or at least borrows from his mythology. Bellerophon tamed Pegasus, and later slew the triple-bodied Chimaera before inciting the wrath of the gods himself and spending the rest of his days as an outcast. Lambert did exhibit two variants of Pegasus and Bellerophon, in 1948 and 1951; perhaps Chronos derived from this, with small details - such as the globe - instating the new theme.

Maurice Lambert is a major figure in the history of 20th Century British sculpture. He began working on Chronos during the 1950s, when he was professor of sculpture at the Royal Academy schools. Lambert's interest in primitive cultures gave his work a unique character, combining simplicity of form with a strong organic aesthetic. His subject matter is predominantly mythical or literary, but he also undertook a number of important portrait commissions, including busts of Edith Sitwell and William Walton (National Portrait Gallery, London).